Part 3/10:
One of the most glaring issues I observed was the disproportionate focus on slavery and race-related topics in exhibits that, by their original intent, appeared to have little to do with these themes. For instance, an exhibit opened in November 2021 at the Smithsonian, dedicated to Benjamin Franklin's innovations, initially promised to be an engaging exploration of his scientific experiments and inventive genius. Instead, the exhibit took a turn, highlighting Franklin's status as a slave owner, making bold claims that Franklin's enslaved workers may have assisted with his experiments — a point made without conclusive evidence. The exhibit framed Franklin's slavery as an unavoidable barrier that prevented him from conducting experiments otherwise, implying a moral failing intertwined with his scientific pursuits.