Smithsonian American Women's History Museum Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum Act, as amended. Frankly, that is disappointing because this bill used to be a bipartisan success story.

Democrats and Republicans came together to support creating both the American Women's History Museum and the National Museum of the American Latino on The National Mall, but instead of building on that bipartisan agreement, this bill was turned into another political power grab with a last-minute partisan amendment in committee.

Republicans inserted culture war language limiting the museum to biological women. That language was not added to improve the museum. It was added to erase trans women from American history.

Whether my Republican colleagues want to acknowledge it or not, trans women are just as much a part of this country's history as anyone else. Museums are supposed to expand our understanding, preserve truth, and reflect the full complexity of this country.

They went even a step further to corrupt this bill, handing President Trump extraordinary control over museum design and planning. Congress should not hand any President unilateral power over how American history is told, especially after we have seen this administration pressure institutions and whitewash history.

This legislation also leaves behind the National Museum of the American Latino, even though Congress established both museums together under the same law. Let's be honest about why. We are watching a systematic effort by Republicans and this administration to strip out uncomfortable truths and erase marginalized communities.

``But Latino history is American history''; ``Pero la historia de los Latinos es la historia americana.''

It is not secondary. It is not optional.

For all these reasons, at the appropriate time, I will offer a motion to recommit this bill back to committee.

If the House rules permitted, I would have offered the motion with an important amendment to this bill.

My amendment would have stripped out the exclusionary language targeting trans women, moved the Women's History Museum and the National Museum of the American Latino forward together, as Congress originally intended, and block this dangerous power grab that hands President Trump unilateral control.

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Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me in voting for the motion to recommit.

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