They called the exhibit an insult to the U.S. Veterans groups considered the proposed exhibit too sympathetic to the Japanese, portraying them as victims of racist Americans hell-bent on revenge for Pearl Harbor. For most Japanese, it was a war to defend their unique culture against Western imperialism.' Another controversial section addressed the question: 'Would the bomb have been dropped on the Germans?' The answer began: 'Some have argued that the United States would never have dropped the bomb on the Germans, because Americans were more reluctant to bomb 'white people' than Asians.' The part of the script that produced the most opposition stated: 'For most Americans, this.was a war of vengeance. The proposal generated a firestorm of controversy. Museum visitors would be encouraged to reflect on the morality of the bombing and to ask whether the bombs were necessary to end the war. As originally conceived, the exhibit, titled 'The Last Act: The Atomic Bomb and the End of World War II,' was designed to provoke debate about the decision to drop atomic bombs. Digital History Printable Version Controversy Continuesįifty years after the United States ended World War II by dropping two atomic bombs on Japan, a major public controversy erupted over plans to exhibit the fuselage of the Enola Gay at the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum.
