Americans born between 1981 and 2010—the Millennial Generation (MY generation)—will see a massive increase in the number of days over 95° in the course of our lifetimes.

As we grow older, blistering, life-threatening heat waves will become the norm—just as we age into the demographic group most vulnerable to heat-wave-related deaths. Risky Business projects an additional 11,000-36,000 people will die of heat-related conditions per year in the Southeast alone, where residents will experience an additional 4 months of 95° and hotter days each year.

This is what the climate crisis will mean. But, it’s only part of the story. We’re already seeing more severe heat-waves and wildfires, drought and floods, storm surges and coastal flooding. There is literally not one corner of this country or the planet not already feeling the effects of global warming.

It’s a monumental task. But, there is good news. Right now, thanks to the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, we have the best chance we’ve ever had to slash carbon pollution from America’s fossil-fuel-burning power plants, the largest source of carbon pollution in the country. That’s important. And with your help, we’re going to win the fight to implement these common-sense, life-saving standards.

So please, take this opportunity for your generation, my generation, and all future generations. Make a donation today to our $3-for-$1 Summer Match Campaign to quadruple the value of your support.

Let’s solve this crisis together, now, while there’s still time.

Thank you for all your support,

Emily Stevenson
Manager, Online Membership

Director D. W. Griffith’s 1915 silent drama, Birth of a Nation, was one of the first major depictions of African Americans on film (actually, white actors in blackface).

Yet the movie portrayed slavery as “civilizing” blacks and made it seem as though African Americans were happier in servitude. Not until the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s-60s was Hollywood making an effort to include more African Americans in its movies and television shows.

But it was last year that director Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave brought the full horror of Southern plantation life to the American people.

It is stories like these that we will tell at the new National Museum of African American History and Culture — stories that reflect the full range of the African American experience from great pain to soaring triumph.

Please join as a Charter Member today so that we can finish building the Museum that will tell these stories and countless others.

Hollywood’s portrayal of the African American experience in the movies is only one of the major cultural themes that the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture will confront, openly and intelligently, to shatter myths and to educate all Americans about the history we all share.

We are not building the Museum to celebrate black history solely for African Americans. Rather, the Museum will be a place for all Americans. A place where everyone can see how the African American experience has affected and shaped the lives of anyone who calls themselves an American.

You have been among the very first Americans to step forward and offer your support to help us construct this new museum. I cannot thank you enough for your generous contribution.

None of this is possible without support from friends like you. Your tax-deductible donation will ensure that our construction continues to progress and ensure that other elements of this grand project stay on track, too.

Together, you and I are creating a center of learning and inspiration that will attract millions of visitors from across the country and around the world. It is here they will come to understand the African American story in full — the moments of great pain and the moments of soaring triumph.

We’re moving closer to reality with each passing day!

Thank you for your support.