Along the National Mall, there are over a dozen museums devoted to art, science, and history. But some say that's not enough.
"At the gathering point in our nation's capital, there is little that tells the full and coherent story about all of the peoples that came to make this nation," says the Coalition for the National Museum of American People. "Without this full story being told here, there's a monumental void in the midst of our capital."
The group is proposing a new museum on the mall that would tell the full story of people's migration to the Americas, which would tell the story of the most recent immigration all the way back to the original settlers that arrived 20,000 years ago.
Organizer Sam Eskenazi wants Congress to appoint a bipartisan commission to look into establishing such a museum. The group says they have the support of an Ivy League panel of scholars, and over 130 ethnic and minority organizations.
They even have possible sites for the new museum picked out: Smithsonian's Arts and Industries building, the Agriculture Department's headquarters building, the Forest Service Auditor's Building, the Liberty Loan Building, or the Banneker Overlook site.
The best part? Organizers say it won't cost taxpayers a dime. Eskenazi said the new museum would be paid for with private funding.
More information about the proposed museum can be found at the group's website.
