Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet was named an honorary member of the board of the Friends of the National Museum of the American Latino, an organization overseeing the planning and creation of a museum in our nation’s capital devoted to highlighting the contributions of Latinos to the American way of life.

Bennet is also a co-sponsor of the Smithsonian American Latino Museum Act, which designates the Arts and Industries Building on the National Mall as the future site of the museum and calls for creating an action plan for fundraising and construction for the future museum. The bill was introduced by Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey.

“The Latino community is an integral part of the fabric of Colorado and the United States,” Bennet said. “I am proud to support the creation of a museum highlighting the role Latinos, including the many great leaders and champions in our own state, have played in our national history and culture and look forward to seeing it share a spot among our nation’s most prized institutions on the National Mall.”

The museum has been in the works since 2009, when a commission was named to study the potential creation of the National Museum of the American Latino. The commission was made up of notable Latino leaders including Interior Secretary and native Coloradan Ken Salazar and Colorado noted businessman woman Cindy Pena. The commission’s final report to the president and Congress is available here.