DEA Museum Launches New Video Series: Stories from the Collection

With the new year comes new, engaging programming from the DEA Museum. Starting this month a new video series will showcase some of the Museum’s most exciting artifacts. “Stories from the Collection” takes viewers behind the scenes to unpack significant and compelling details about objects on and off display.

Co-hosted by Kasey Sease, Ph.D., the Museum’s Historian, and Emma Miller, the Museum Technician, each episode explores pivotal moments in the history of DEA, federal drug law enforcement, and drug use in American culture. New episodes of the series will be released monthly to regularly introduce viewers to fascinating and noteworthy artifacts. There is no shortage of stories to tell. The Museum’s collection of over 45,000 artifacts, photographs, videos, and documents is always growing. Undercover operations, narco-culture, coca-infused wine, and a physician-turned-privateer are only some of the topics that will be covered in the year ahead. Episodes will be available on YouTube and the DEA Museum’s website, www.deamuseum.org.

The first episode spotlights a pair of platform shoes worn by an undercover agent in 1970s Detroit. Retired Special Agent Doug Wankel wore the shoes to blend in with people around him as he investigated the use and sale of illicit drugs. The video features an interview with Agent Wankel from the Museum’s oral history collection. Upon retirement, he donated his platform shoes to the Museum where they are now on display.

For viewers who want a taste of the ever-expanding collection in person, the all-new DEA Museum is now open. The reimagined space includes engaging, interactive exhibits. Hands-on activities, captivating artifacts, and diverse, personal histories invite visitors of all ages to explore the long, dynamic history of drug use, misuse, and law enforcement. Open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Museum is located at 700 Army Navy Drive in Arlington, Virginia.

To view more episodes of “Stories from the Collection,” visit the Museum’s Video Archive.