The Smithsonian Institution faced renewed scrutiny this week as House lawmakers examined whether the taxpayer-funded museum system continued promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) training materials that critics say mirror concepts the institution previously apologized for in 2020. The hearings before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability featured testimony from experts and confrontation between legislators and museum leadership.
Mike Gonzalez, a DEI and identity politics expert at the Heritage Foundation, testified that despite apologizing for a controversial "whiteness" chart in 2020, the National Museum of American History continued advancing similar concepts through a training guide known as the "Museums as Sites for Social Action" (MASS) toolkit. According to Gonzalez, the toolkit describes objectivity, individualism, and perfectionism as characteristics of white supremacy.
In 2020, the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture removed and apologized for a chart that described "objective, rational linear thinking" as an aspect of "whiteness" or "white dominant culture." The institution stated at the time: "We erred in including the chart. We have removed it, and we apologize," according to reports by the Miami Herald.
What the Left Is Saying
Defenders of the Smithsonian's DEIA initiatives argue that diversity training helps institutions better understand and serve increasingly diverse audiences. Museum leadership has pushed back against characterization of their programs as ideological.
During this week's hearings, Anthea Hartig, director of the National Museum of American History, told lawmakers that the museum did not develop the MASS toolkit and stated: "We're not promoting any ideology." The Smithsonian Institution has maintained that its diversity initiatives are designed to ensure all visitors feel welcome and that staff can work effectively across cultural differences.
Proponents note that the institution self-corrected when concerns were raised in 2020, removing the original chart and issuing a public apology within weeks. They argue this demonstrates institutional accountability rather than ideological capture.
What the Right Is Saying
Conservative critics say the continued use of similar materials after the 2020 apology shows systemic problems at the taxpayer-funded institution. Republican lawmakers have called for congressional action.
During the hearings, Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, confronted Hartig about passages in the MASS Action toolkit that assert objectivity is part of white supremacy culture. Gonzalez testified that half a dozen current and former Smithsonian employees co-authored the toolkit, including an NMAH employee, and that materials reference Smithsonian resources.
"The museum kept surreptitiously indoctrinating staff with this trash for three years after the museum apologized for using it," Gonzalez told lawmakers. "This is their own words—the leadership of the Smithsonian says constantly that it wants to use the museum to transform America."
Gonzalez also pointed to a 2022 "Excellence in DEAI Report" co-authored by Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch that praises the MASS Action toolkit as a resource for formal DEI training. The report states that "one major aspect of the work that takes time is shifting leaders and museum professionals away from white-dominant characteristics of perfection, risk aversion, and conflict avoidance to move toward action."
"Once again, I call on Congress to do its duty and take back the Smithsonian from a rogue leadership," Gonzalez said. "This insanity has gone on long enough."
What the Numbers Show
The Smithsonian Institution receives approximately $1.6 billion annually in federal funding, making it one of the largest publicly funded cultural institutions in the world. The 2020 whiteness chart was removed within weeks of public outcry, according to museum records.
The MASS Action toolkit was developed as part of a broader initiative by museums across the country seeking to incorporate social action into their programming. According to documents cited during the hearings, Smithsonian staff participated in reading groups studying these materials for three years following the 2020 apology.
The Heritage Foundation estimates that federal agencies and funded institutions have spent an estimated $50 million on DEI-related training programs annually, though comprehensive figures across all federally supported cultural institutions are not publicly available.
The Bottom Line
This week's hearings mark the second time in six years that congressional Republicans have scrutinized Smithsonian diversity programming. The institution maintains it has addressed past concerns while critics argue that similar concepts persisted under different terminology.
What happens next: The House Oversight Committee may schedule additional hearings to examine whether conditions attached to federal funding should require greater transparency in how cultural institutions spend taxpayer dollars on training programs. Museum leadership is expected to submit formal written responses to the questions raised during this week's testimony.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum of American History for comment but had not received a response at time of publication.