ICOM-US released a Statement in Support of The Smithsonian
Museums exist because every generation inherits an unfinished story.
Our responsibility is not simply to preserve objects or recount familiar narratives. It is to pursue evidence wherever it leads, ask meaningful questions, and invite the public to engage with history in all its richness, complexity, triumphs, and contradictions. Museums exist not to end conversations, but to begin them.
In light of the recent congressional hearings and actions affecting the Smithsonian Institution, ICOM-US expresses its unwavering support for the Smithsonian Institution, its leadership, its governing bodies, and the thousands of museum professionals who steward one of the world's greatest cultural and educational institutions. At moments when the role and independence of museums is called into question, it is important that museum professionals speak clearly about the principles that guide their work.
The pursuit of knowledge requires both humility and courage. Museums help us explore the ambiguities of the past, uncover previously untold stories, revisit long-held assumptions, and deepen our understanding of ourselves and one another. They invite us to engage with evidence, ask questions, think critically, and participate in respectful dialogue. The pursuit of knowledge requires both humility and courage.
The public places its trust in museums because they are guided by scholarship, professional expertise, ethical practice, and intellectual integrity. Museums and the histories they reflect should evolve when new evidence emerges, scholarship advances, and communities help us better understand our shared history.
Following six years of global collaboration, museum professionals recently adopted a revised ICOM Code of Ethics, reaffirming museums' responsibility to serve society through integrity, scholarship, dialogue, institutional independence, and public accountability. These principles guide our statement today.
As the United States National Committee of the International Council of Museums, we reaffirm those principles. We stand alongside the American Alliance of Museums in affirming the essential role museums play in American civic life and the importance of safeguarding their independence, integrity, and public trust.
Museums do not simply preserve our past. They help us understand it. In doing so, they strengthen our democracy, deepen our shared humanity, and help us imagine a stronger future together.