The Molina Family Latino Gallery will explore the diverse stories of Latinos in the United States—past, present, and future—through dynamic, multidisciplinary exhibitions and programming that:
- Create participatory experiences for individuals, families, and groups.
- Encourage intergenerational and intercultural conversations.
- Celebrate the diversity of the Latino community.
- Present the Latino experience as quintessentially American.
We want our visitors to connect current events to historical precedents, and to participate in the story. Our exhibits should start conversations around our shared American experience. It is important that we offer a space for visitors to creatively engage with history, culture, and each other.
Eduardo Díaz, Acting Deputy Director, National Museum of the American Latino
Patriot, educator, entrepreneur, laborer, artist, healer, innovator, entertainer, community activist, and leader—native born and immigrant—Latinos have played and continue to play a foundational role in nation-building and shaping our national culture.
The Molina Family Latino Gallery is part of an ongoing, integrated Smithsonian-wide effort supporting research, exhibitions, public and educational program, web content, collections and archives, and publications about the Latino experience in the United States.
The Latino Gallery presents engaging stories of journey, struggle, discovery, success, identity, and acculturation.
Its future home at the National Museum of American History brings these stories to diverse, intergenerational audiences. Accessing the Smithsonian’s vast collections and employing the latest storytelling technology, the Latino Gallery will offer visitors broad perspectives on this integral part of the American story.
Bilingual exhibitions, public and educational programs, and robust online offerings will be driven by focused research. The Molina Family Latino Gallery will consult with Smithsonian scholars as well as experts, tradition bearers, and innovators outside of the Institution. In-person and online visitors will be invited to discuss their perspective and play an active role in creating this much-needed, dynamic gateway to the Latino experience at the Smithsonian.
The gallery’s inaugural exhibition, “¡Presente! A Latino History of the United States,” introduces visitors to critical concepts, moments, and biographies that shine a light on the historical and cultural legacy of U.S. Latinas and Latinos.
As the Smithsonian’s first gallery entirely dedicated to Latino history and culture, the Molina Family Latino Gallery embodies what we might someday see in the future National Museum of the American Latino.