Museum of Chinese in America gets $3M after fire, pandemic closure

The Museum of Chinese in America is finally getting some good news after enduring a fire that threatened its archives in January and being closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic for months. 

The Ford Foundation has given the museum a $3 million grant as part of its initiative to provide pandemic aid to arts organizations led by people of color, according to the New York Times. That funding is larger than an entire year’s budget for the museum.

In addition to the funding boost, the museum has managed to salvage its 85,000-item collection that was at risk of being destroyed in this year’s fire. Around 95% of the collection was saved but the restoration process cost the museum millions of dollars, which was covered in part through insurance and donations. 

While the museum’s location remains closed, it will be displaying an exhibit in its windows and hold a temporary workshop on Howard Street with its artifacts. 

The Chinatown building that houses the museum and other nonprofits such as the United East Athletics Association and the Chen Dance Center will receive $80 million in capital funding for its restoration following the fire, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced in July.