Hello everyone!
Last night, Maria and I had dinner at a Laotian place called 'Thip Kao'. The food was absolutely delicious!
This morning I got up at 6.30am to book a time slot for the African American Museum. It only opened on my birthday last year in September and has been so busy that timed tickets are required to get in. I got a 1pm time slot.
It was 18 degrees today and I was so excited I didn't even have to wear a cardigan! Everyone was out jogging in shorts haha.
Today was a day full of museums. I came up with a plan that would allow me to go to the four main Smithsonian Museums I wanted to visit: Air and Space, American Indian, African American and Natural History.
The Smithsonian Institute was set up after a wealthy British man named James Smithson passed away in 1829 and left his estate to the USA, stipulating that it be used to build museums that would increase knowledge. All the museums are free to enter which is fantastic as you can pick and choose which exhibits to visit!
Firstly, I went to the Air and Space Museum. I wandered around to all galleries and saw many different exhibits about the space race with Russia, the history of flying including the Wright Brothers' planes and Amelia Earhart's red plane that she flew over the Atlantic in in 1932. Both of those were pretty special!! There were spaceships, sea planes, aircraft carriers, a 1:10 billion scale model of the solar system, and even a McDonald's inside (which I thought was weird!). I was amazed at all the real life planes and spaceships and thought of how grateful I am to those that investigated flying and allow us today to fly all over the world and see so many different places.
My second stop was the Museum of the American Indian. There was an interesting photographic exhibition about American Indians trying to assimilate in the 1900s, including taking part in wars etc. Then I saw an exhibit about the Inka culture, which talked about the Qhapaq Ñan Inka Road that the Inka Trail is a part of. A lot of the photos, artefacts and facts resonated with me because I had seen and learned about them on my trip to South America. I love it when my trips intertwine! I was really impressed with an example of a bridge made of grass that could stand up to 2300kg, the Inka people were very clever.
The next part of the museum was quite sad. It was all about when the English (soon to be Americans) arrived and took over the land of the American Indians. 374 treaties have been signed between American Indians and the USA. These started off peaceful and seemed to be working, but in the 1800s the Americans became ruthless, breaking treaties and taking land. The Indian removal act was put in place in 1830 and saw American Indian civilisations being given tiny pockets of land for themselves and that was it. Many of them apparently sided with the British in various wars to try and stop the Americans. Lastly, I watched a video and then had some lunch in the Native Foods cafe. I enjoyed a delicious corn and chorizo soup and a green bean quinoa salad.
The African American Museum was next up, and I got in all ok with my timed ticket. I had read it was absolutely fantastic and the reviews were right. There were three levels below ground and you start off by getting a lift right to the bottom. This historical section was split into three sections - 1400-1877 Slavery and Freedom 1877-1968 Era of Segregation, 1968 and Beyond A Changing America. The museum itself is built on the site of a former tobacco plantation which had 200 slaves working on it in the 1800s.
Africa and Europe had traded for centuries, but sadly in the 1600s people became a commodity. Overall, 12.5 million African people were forced to leave Africa to be slaves. England sent 40% of these people, Portugal 31%, France 18% and the Netherlands 6%. Slave catchers would raid people's homes and abduct them. Apparently the conditions on the ships to America were absolutely terrible, and many people jumped overboard to choose death instead of their fate in America.
The slaves were sent in order to build things and farm crops, mainly sugar. In 1787, 90% of the world's sugar was produced by slaves in America. The life expectancy of slaves sent over was seven years on average and there was a 30% mortality rate. It wasn't until 1808 that the transatlantic slave trade was abolished. However, many slaves were still traded within the US.
Then it got onto the revolutionary war and how some slaves were sent in their master's place. I was again struck by the fact that the people here were so up in arms that Britain were withholding their freedom, while they were withholding it from all of the slaves. Unbelievably, Thomas Jefferson, who wrote the declaration claiming all men are created equal owned 609 slaves in his last time. He was also one of the 12 of the first 18 presidents of this country who owned slaves.
Then I read about the Louisiana Purchase and various restrictions put in place for certain states regarding slavery. In 1860, Lincoln won the election with less than 40% of the vote due to four candidates being put forward instead of the usual two. He didn't win any southern states. 11 states threatened to leave the USA as a result and became the Confederate States of America for what would be the civil war. Interestingly, Lincoln initially thought that once the slaves were free they should go home. But his view changed over time and he was happy to let them stay in America.
From 1863 to 1865, the emancipation proclamation and the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments gave African Americans the same rights as white Americans and said that no one would be denied the right to vote due to their race or colour.
I then went to the second level and read about the awful segregation that African American people were subjected to after these amendments were created. While some people set up communities to help welcome African Americans, others were far from welcoming. A quote summed it up by saying that these people had been "turned loose to the wrath of their infuriated masters". The Jim Crow Laws were introduced so that white and coloured people were segregated in schools, on the bus, using the drink tap etc. I can't believe the world I live in was like this just 50 years or so ago...! Absolutely horrible to think about. There were parts of the exhibit about race riots, the KKK, and then the civil rights act of 1964 that gave the federal government a role in desegregating schools and take over voter registration when threatened.
Obviously the whole museum was pretty heavy and emotionally draining, but I couldn't help myself and burst into tears upon reading a truly heartbreaking story that I hadn't heard about before that happened in 1955. 14 year old Emmett Till convinced his mother to let him travel to Mississippi to see his family. After initially not wanting him to go, his mother Marnie did. Whilst in a shop, the white lady on the till said that he insulted her. And Emmett went missing a couple of days later. His body was found dumped in a river with a shot through his head, and the two men who killed him were acquitted at their trial. This event set a chain reaction in place of other events leading up to the civil rights act. Just three months later Rosa Parks would refuse to move on the bus. She said she "thought about Emmett Till and I could not go back". He was just an innocent young boy who wanted to visit his family. So horrible.
The third underground level was about 1968 to now and talked about the Black Power movement and what has happened more recently. Part of the exhibition was about Oprah, and then it ended with Barack Obama's inauguration in 2008. I watched a video about recent police violence towards African Americans and then headed upstairs. I didn't look at all the exhibitions upstairs as I was running out of time, but I went and had a look at the sports section. There was a statue of the 1968 Olympics 200m sprint medal ceremony, when Australian Peter Norman stood by John Carlos and Tommie Smith.
After three hours in the museum, I walked out and met Maria at the Natural History Museum. We walked around looking at the Hope Diamond, mammals, Australian animals, butterfly house and more.
Tonight we went out for Pho and then drove to Virginia for ice cream. I've had a great day and really enjoyed the museums, but I'm so tired after reading and walking around so much! Now we are watching 'The Lizzie McGuire Movie', a favourite of mine and Maria's when we were kids!
Love to all
Claire
Xoxox
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