Capital Jewish Museum, Washington, DC

“CONNECT. REFLECT. ACT.” These words, glowing in neon, welcome visitors to the Capital Jewish Museum. Appearing in bold type on the introductory panel as well, they foretell a bold mission for an “identity” museum. While these words nod to the traditional notion of a place where members of a religious, ethnic, or racial group can come together in self-congratulatory celebration (CONNECT), there is also a sense of connections beyond the community, a wrestling with history (REFLECT), and an impulse towards civic engagement (ACT). A recent addition to the Washington, DC, identity museum landscape, the Capital Jewish Museum (CJM) must—like the larger and more famous Smithsonian examples—answer central questions: for whom such a museum is imagined, who is included, and what end it serves. CJM’s answers are sophisticated and at times provocative. Solid research is creatively and accessibly exhibited, providing a good model for what...