[Exterior of the White House]
[The White House Historical Association placard]
[Exterior of the White House Historical Association]
[People taking photos during a public tour of the White House]
[The first floor experiences at “”The People’s House: A White House Experience,” including a recreation of the Oval Office]
[President Joe Biden’s redecorated Oval Office of the White House]
Stewart McLaurin (interview): “This will be a technology rich, immersive experience where you will actually go into spaces and due to the miracles of modern technology, those spaces will become White House rooms around you. And you will be in the Green Room or the Blue Room or the State Dining Room or the cabinet room, and have interactive engagements with representations of presidents, present and past, and issues and matters that they would have dealt with. You will participate in what a state dinner would be like if you were actually sitting at the table in the State Dining room with the president and first lady. We will bring to life the behind the scenes people that make the White House be what it is and operate as it is, no matter who the president may be. And those are the ushers, chefs, florists, butlers, housekeepers, electricians, plumbers, all of those who operate that historic home and make it the very best it can be for everyday operations.”
[A 360° interactive theater that immerses visitors as the room transforms to represent White House rooms like the Green Room]
[Abraham Lincoln’s portrait in the State Dining Room]
[The White House State Dining Room]
[A multi-media program inside the 1:5 scale model of the White House]
[The north lawn of the White House seen from Lafayette Park]
[A historical marker that addresses the construction of the White House by both enslaved people and paid laborers is displayed at the northern end of Lafayette Park]
Stewart McLaurin (interview): “History is not always a rosy subject. There is very difficult, challenging stories with the White House itself. I mentioned the 200 workers that we’ve identified that worked in Lafayette Park to build the White House. There were also enslaved people who were owned by or leased from slave owners by 11 of our first 12 American presidents who lived and worked under the roof of the White House. Owned by a president, and that’s horrific. But we can’t shy away from the ugliness of that history. That’s part of the fabric. Those enslaved people are just as much of White House history — part of White House history as any president or first lady, in my view. And that is another story that we’re deeply involved in telling.”
[The White House entrance hall]
[George Washington’s portrait that shows multiple rooms in the White House]
[The second floor experiences at “The People’s House: A White House Experience,” including a gallery featuring White House staff]
[The People’s House: A White House Experience,” located just one block away from the White House at 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue]
This script was provided by The Associated Press.