Please enjoy Anna ’28’s post about how, although aviation and space history are interconnectedly tied with political conflicts, it was evident that the museum gave its best to approach this with neutrality and instead focused on the practical aspects of each event. This alone made us all reflect on how the neutral approach to history has the ability to celebrate historical achievements as a whole, rather than belonging to one nation only—emphasizing the need for an inclusive global society.
After leaving the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, we once again stepped into the cold air of DC to walk to our second stop of the day, the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum. Coming in, we were greeted with the sight of historical planes and space rockets flying around in the high ceilings above us. Due to our limited time, we quickly decided to reconvene in the museum’s lobby after an hour and a half. We proceeded to split into groups to check out the different galleries that were displayed. The second floor of the museum had a variety of exhibitions ranging from historical conflicts and achievements that shaped the world’s aviation evolution to the exploration of the role of satellites in our modern society. Although aviation and space history are interconnectedly tied with political conflicts, it was evident that the museum gave its best to approach this with neutrality and instead focused on the practical aspects of each event. This alone made us all reflect on how the neutral approach to history has the ability to celebrate historical achievements as a whole, rather than belonging to one nation only—emphasizing the need for an inclusive global society. The floors below, however, showcased a variety of space artifacts from different missions and moments in history alongside a two-floor gift shop where we would shop for NASA merchandise and gifts for our families and friends. It was soon time to meet up again with the complete group at the lobby to continue our trip to the National Archives Museum, the facility that contained the original copy of the Declaration of Independence.
