American women deserve a national museum that has historical integrity and is inclusive of the 500 years (and more) of diverse American women’s history. As this image from Guerrilla Girls shows, women are invisible on the National Mall.

We ask that the U.S. Congress pass legislation that treats women’s history with the same respect as has been accorded other groups who have been granted museum space on the National Mall. It is the stated intent of Congress to preserve the National Mall as civic space. The 1986 Commemorative Works Act asks that future additions to the National Mall “reflect a consensus of the lasting national significance of the subjects involved.” We seek the same level of consideration for a national museum of women’s history and hope to see a museum free to the public.

Unfortunately, what is being proposed is NOT public accountable or inclusive of women’s organizations. It is unheard of for a private entity to have a privileged place on the National Mall and yet that is exactly what this legislation permits.

On March 14, the private entity named in the legislation and which has lobbied for a museum, National Women’s History Museum, Inc. (NWHM, Inc.) dismissed all the scholars on its Scholarly Advisory Council. If NWHM, Inc. cannot work with scholars and does not appreciate their critical importance to a museum that tells history with fidelity, the more serious issue is that the commission proposed in the legislation also fails to create a working commission.

Further, the ONLY people who are considered to have credentials to plan for a museum in H.R. 863 or S. 398 are those with museum experience or fundraising, or who currently teach history at a university or college, or who have elected or public office experience. The problem is that this fails to ensure regional or racial and ethnic balance and this leaves out many others with expertise, including scholars with degrees in other fields, those who do public history or are researchers who may not be teaching in a university, as well as self-taught scholars and activists as well as leaders of women’s organizations who have fought for women. A successful museum should not only include ALL types of scholars, it should be inclusive of ALL women’s organizations to deserve both our public and our private contributions.

• Expand the Commission SIZE to at least 25 to 30 Members. The current size of only eight members chosen from highly restrictive types of combined expertise is one-third (or less) than other commissions which have ranged from 23 to 26 (Latino or African-American commissions) or even 60 (Holocaust commission) in size;

• Lengthen the DURATION of the Commission to two or three years. The current limited timeframe of only18 months is too short to include the public;

• Permit the PRESIDENT to appoint some of the Commission members consistent with other successful museums on or near the National Mall;

• Ensure that the appointment of Commission members is done in CONSULTATION with the women’s community and historical and other public history and women’s studies associations and scholarly disciplines which research women’s history to build consensus;

• Provide a process to ensure there is NO CONFLICT OF INTEREST among the Commission members to avoid misuse of the commission for private or commercial purposes;

• Delete the EXEMPTION from the Federal Advisory Commission Act to ensure open meeting, public notice and reporting;

• Include the Department of Interior and the National Park Service (NPS) which have experience in staffing commissions as part of the STRUCTURE;

• Permit federal STAFF to be detailed to assist the Commission to provide needed expertise in a cost-effective way;

• Provide for daily COMPENSATION for Commission members who serve to avoid financial hardship for those who cannot afford unpaid leave from their work;

• Add some LEGISLATIVE GUIDANCE on the mission of the Commission to determine the scope of the museum, and include the need to support research into women’s history; and

• Ensure that any national museum of women’s history have some sort of PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY. Features which are currently absent include creation of a representative board that is based upon congressional or presidential appointment; inclusion of some degree of Smithsonian oversight and affiliation, and regular reporting to Congress and the President.

All of these provisions are found in other museums on the National Mall even when built with private funds, and any museum placed on the National Mall should be available to future generations and open to evolving visions of public history and scholarship.