1 / 4

Jill Savitt, President and CEO of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, leads a hard-hat tour of the expanded museum before its November reopening on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Warren)

ATLANTA – A popular museum in Atlanta is expanding at a critical moment in the United States — and unlike the Smithsonian Institution , the National Center for Civil and Human Rights is privately funded, putting it beyond the immediate reach of Trump administration efforts to control what Americans learn about their history.

The monthslong renovation, which cost nearly $60 million, adds six new galleries as well as classrooms and interactive experiences, changing a relatively static museum into a dynamic place where people are encouraged to take action sup

See Full Page