Medgar Wiley Evers Congressional Gold Medal Act

Medgar Wiley Evers Congressional Gold Medal Act

Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal in commemoration of Medgar Wiley Evers, in recognition of his contributions and sacrifice in the fight for racial equality in the United States. Requires the medal, following its award, to be given to the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, where it is to be available for display or temporary loan to be displayed elsewhere.

[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 194 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 194

To award posthumously a Congressional Gold Medal to Medgar Wiley Evers, 
in recognition of his contributions and ultimate sacrifice in the fight 
               for racial equality in the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 7, 2015

Mr. Harper (for himself and Mr. Thompson of Mississippi) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To award posthumously a Congressional Gold Medal to Medgar Wiley Evers, 
in recognition of his contributions and ultimate sacrifice in the fight 
               for racial equality in the United States.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Medgar Wiley Evers Congressional 
Gold Medal Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) An integral part of the fight for racial equality, 
        Medgar Wiley Evers, was born July 2, 1925, in Decatur, 
        Mississippi, to James and Jessie Evers.
            (2) Faithfully serving his country, Medgar Evers willingly 
        left high school to join the Army at the start of World War II.
            (3) After the conclusion of the war, Mr. Evers returned 
        home to Mississippi, completed high school, enrolled in Alcorn 
        Agricultural and Mechanical College (presently known as Alcorn 
        State University) and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 
        Business Administration.
            (4) While at Alcorn State University, Medgar Evers met and 
        married fellow Alcorn student, Myrlie Beasley, of Vicksburg, 
        Mississippi.
            (5) Upon graduation, Myrlie and Medgar Evers moved to Mound 
        Bayou, Mississippi, where Medgar held a job with Magnolia 
        Mutual Life Insurance Company, and began establishing local 
        chapters of the National Association for the Advancement of 
        Colored People (``NAACP'') throughout the Mississippi Delta.
            (6) Having been so moved by the immense suffering of 
        African-Americans in Mississippi, Medgar Evers felt compelled 
        to fight to change the circumstances and challenges facing them 
        and, in 1954, Medgar Evers became the first known African-
        American to apply to the University of Mississippi School of 
        Law. Mr. Evers was denied enrollment.
            (7) In 1954, Medgar Evers became the first Field Secretary 
        for the Mississippi chapter of the NAACP.
            (8) In the capacities of his new position Medgar Evers 
        hosted numerous voter registration efforts in Mississippi and, 
        as a result of these activities, received numerous threats 
        against his life.
            (9) Despite these threats, Mr. Evers carried on his work 
        with dedication and courage, organizing rallies, building 
        membership within the NAACP, and traveling around the country 
        educating the public on the fight for Civil Rights.
            (10) Medgar and Myrlie Evers' passion for quality education 
        for all children led them to file suit against the Jackson, 
        Mississippi, public school system gaining him attention with 
        the national media as a leader of the Civil Rights Movement in 
        Mississippi.
            (11) As a result of his continued and ongoing efforts--
        rallies, sit-ins, and protests--to stand up for the rights of 
        African-Americans in Mississippi, Mr. Evers was arrested, 
        beaten, and jailed with his due process rights denied.
            (12) The senseless and abhorrent violence against Mr. Evers 
        reached its pinnacle on June 12, 1963, when he was violently 
        shot in front of his home and died shortly afterwards in a 
        local hospital, mere hours after President John F. Kennedy had 
        made a national televised speech from the Oval Office calling 
        for full racial integration in America. The Civil Rights Act 
        was enacted the following year.
            (13) As a veteran, Evers was buried with full military 
        honors at Arlington National Cemetery.
            (14) On June 23, 1963, Byron De La Beckwith, a member of 
        the White Citizens' Council, was arrested for Evers' murder, 
        but juries in 1964, composed solely of White men, twice 
        deadlocked on De La Beckwith's guilt, resulting in mistrials.
            (15) Following two trials resulting in acquittal, in 1990, 
        Mrs. Evers convinced Mississippi prosecutors to reopen Medgar 
        Evers' murder case, and a new trial led to the conviction and 
        life imprisonment of Medgar Evers' killer in 1994.
            (16) It is befitting that Congress bestow the highest 
        civilian honor, the Congressional Gold Medal, to Medgar Wiley 
        Evers, posthumously in honor of his work on behalf of racial 
        equality which tragically led to his assassination, but also 
        was a major catalyst in passage and enactment of the Civil 
        Rights Act in 1964.

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

    (a) Presentation Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of 
Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make 
appropriate arrangements for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of 
the Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration of 
Medgar Wiley Evers, in recognition of his contributions and ultimate 
sacrifice in the fight for racial equality in the United States.
    (b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation referred 
to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred to in 
this Act as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a gold medal with suitable 
emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.
    (c) Award of Medal.--Following the award of the gold medal in 
commemoration of Medgar Wiley Evers under subsection (a), the medal 
shall be given to the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, where it shall 
be available for display or temporary loan to be displayed elsewhere, 
as appropriate.

SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

    The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold 
medal struck pursuant to section 3 under such regulations as the 
Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient to cover the cost 
thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and 
overhead expenses, and the cost of the gold medal.

SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS.

    (a) National Medals.--The medals struck pursuant to this Act are 
national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States 
Code.
    (b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of section 5134 of title 31, 
United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be 
considered to be numismatic items.
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