EBONY Power 100 special honoree Lonnie Bunch lll, 73, has retirement on the horizon after a tenure of uphill battles and resilience due to the current Trump administration. “Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch plans to announce his retirement from the institution at the end of this year, bringing to a close a tenure marked by unprecedented pressure on the museum complex from a White House keen on controlling how to tell the nation’s history,” said a statement in The Atlantic. The institution includes 21 museums, 20 libraries and the National Zoo.
“It is with very mixed emotions and heartfelt gratitude that I announce my retirement from the Smithsonian,” Bunch said in a statement. “I leave with pride and sadness, gratitude and joy, and with enormous confidence in the people who will carry this remarkable institution forward.”
Bunch was the first historian to become secretary and the first museum director to become secretary since 1945. He has over 40 years of experience in the museum field. In the late 1970s, he was the education specialist at the National Air and Space Museum, and from 1989 through 2000, he worked in the office of curatorial affairs in the National Museum of American History.
The announcement comes at a trying time for Black storytelling and, more importantly, for preserving history. The Trump administration has constantly criticized the Smithsonian’s presentation of America’s past. “History is so important. It shapes who we are… there were people who were Black a hundred years ago, who we’ve forgotten about,” he told EBONY in 2025.
Throughout his tenure, Bunch has been able to preserve and cultivate a space for history and intergenerational bonding that stems from the past, present, and future. With this new change on the horizon, the question stands: what happens to our history now?
His leadership resonates deeply, especially at a time when the storytelling around Black history and cultural legacy is under scrutiny, including a signed executive order by President Trump calling for signage to be added to the exterior of the National Museum of American History warning about what the administration believes is an inaccurate and partisan telling of history. As he reflects on his journey, his commitment to historical authenticity becomes clear. “My call is to always to make sure that I give voice to the anonymous and make the invisible visible,” he said.
His tenure has been marked not only by significant achievements but also by the challenges of political pressure and a shifting national narrative. As he reflects on his journey, his commitment to historical authenticity becomes clear. Bunch’s dedication to amplifying often-overlooked voices ensures the narrative of our shared past continues to evolve, prompting us to consider what lies ahead for our historical institutions in a changing society.
“This is not about celebrating me; what this award does is celebrate history,” Bunch said at the Power 100 2025 Gala. “This is the night that reminds us that history is important and as James Baldwin said, ‘History is not about the past, it’s about today.’”