WASHINGTON — It’s a constant flow of visitors during opening weekend at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The museum is open until midnight to accommodate the influx of tourists eager to experience the museum on its inaugural weekend.
Jared Galazin, from Arlington, Virginia, toured the facility with his wife, Melissa, and daughter, Kate.
“I really enjoyed it,” Jared Galazin said. “I think probably one of the best parts of the museum for me was kind of the upstairs display, seeing the role that the military played in helping to advance civil rights in general,” he said. Both Jared and Melissa serve in the military.
D.C. resident Brenda Coward said visitors should plan to spend one day in each floor of the museum.
“There’s a lot to see, a lot to read,” Coward said.
Opening weekend visitors also hail from clear across the United States.
“I think the one thing that stood out to me me mostly was I always knew the passage here was rough, but the number of people that didn’t make that was incredible,” said Herman Greene of Riverside, California.
Michael Wilson from Oceanside, California, said he’s getting exposure to a lot of things he didn’t know, or only heard in passing. “For example, free black people and the struggles they had during the periods of slavery, very interesting,” he explained.
The Abdul-Mateen sisters met up to experience the museum together.
“I didn’t realize about the domestic slave trade. I didn’t realize there was so much breeding that happened. You know about the Atlantic slave trade, but I didn’t know there was so much that happened within the country,” said Jameelah Abdul-Mateen from the district.
Her sister Soyini traveled from Raleigh, North Carolina, and said she was overwhelmed the minute she stepped into the building. It reminded her of a visit to Goree Island in Senegal.
“I kept tearing up as I saw things that I knew, but had forgotten,” Soyini Abdul-Mateen said.
