Museum Reverses Position, Will Mention Bill Cosby’s Alleged Crimes; Slate, 4/1/16

Christina Cauterucci, Slate; Museum Reverses Position, Will Mention Bill Cosby’s Alleged Crimes:

"“We understand but respectfully disagree” with that suggestion, Bunch wrote. “For too long, aspects of African American history have been erased and undervalued, creating an incomplete interpretation of the American past. This museum seeks to tell, in the words of the eminent historian John Hope Franklin, ‘the unvarnished truth’ that will help our visitors to remember and better understand what has often been erased and forgotten.”

Bunch is right—the contributions of people of color have been underplayed and written out of every branch of historical study. In arts and culture in particular, white people have adopted and profited from black traditions for generations. But the lives of sexual assault survivors have been excised from popular histories, too, bolstering the legacies of men who abused their power at others’ expense...

The case of the NMAAHC is both weightier than that of the African Art Museum, since it’s a permanent display, and less so, because the entire exhibition does not hinge on Cosby’s name. The museums’ equivocation speaks to the predicament of many African-American cultural institutions that are grappling with the prospect of Cosby as a fallen star. The Cosby Show was a treasured reflection of black life for people who rarely saw their families represented in popular media, and it both normalized and complicated white America’s understanding of the black upper-middle–class family. There is no doubt that Cosby was an influential force in American comedy and a groundbreaker for black actors and comedians—that’s why the revelations about his alleged history of sexual abuse have so completely shocked and appalled the country. Cosby should absolutely have a place in a museum of black history and culture. But if we are to do right by future generations who’ll interpret Cosby’s legacy from exhibitions like this one, it must not evade the complicated truths of his story."

Museum’s Plan to Include Cosby Material Draws Criticism From Accusers; New York Times, 3/27/16

Graham Bowley, New York Times; Museum’s Plan to Include Cosby Material Draws Criticism From Accusers:

"Several women who have accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault say they are upset that the new National Museum of African American History and Culture plans not to mention their accusations in an exhibition that recognizes Mr. Cosby’s pioneering work in comedy and television.

“If they just speak about the contributions, there will be this enormous presence that is not talked about,” Patricia Leary Steuer, 59, who has accused Mr. Cosby of assaulting her decades ago, said on Saturday...

The Smithsonian Institution faced questions last year when its National Museum of African Art featured works on loan from the substantial art collection of Mr. Cosby and his wife, Camille.

The Smithsonian eventually put up a sign telling visitors that the museum did not condone the behavior of which Mr. Cosby is accused.

The situation at the new history and culture museum is different from that one, Smithsonian officials have said, noting that Mr. Cosby’s presence in it will be minimal and that he has not donated money or objects to it."