I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5340 

To award posthumously a Congressional Gold Medal to Hazel M. Johnson, 

in recognition of her achievements and contributions to the environmental 

justice movement. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 6, 2019 

Mr. RUSH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To award posthumously a Congressional Gold Medal to Hazel 

M. Johnson, in recognition of her achievements and contributions to the environmental justice movement. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hazel M. Johnson 

5 Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Hazel Johnson fought for environmental 

2 justice in Chicago beginning in the 1970s and con3 tinuing through the rest of her life. 

4 (2) When Johnson discovered that the South 

5 Side of Chicago had the highest cancer rate of any 

6 area in Chicago, she was inspired to investigate the 

7 cancer rates, foul odors, and number of children 

8 with respiratory illnesses in her own neighborhood, 

9 the community of Altgeld Gardens on the South 

10 Side of Chicago. 

11 (3) She discovered her community, Altgeld Gar12 dens, which is a public housing project, was built on 

13 a landfill surrounded by toxicity, which polluted the 

14 air, water, and land. 

15 (4) Additionally, the Altgeld Gardens homes 

16 had asbestos and elevated lead levels. 

17 (5) This discovery inspired Johnson to create 

18 the People for Community Recovery, an organization 

19 which fights for a safer environment. 

20 (6) Johnson and the People for Community Re21 covery fought to educate and empower the residents 

22 of Altgeld Gardens, including providing workshops 

23 and trainings, conducting health surveys, rallying 

24 residents to protest contamination, and working with 

25 youth in the community. 


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1 (7) The People for Community Recovery put 

2 pressure on the Chicago Housing Authority to re3 move asbestos from Altgeld Gardens. 

4 (8) Johnson’s fight for clean water led to the 

5 installation of water and sewer lines by city health 

6 officials in the far South Side neighborhood of Mary7 land Manor, where the existing well water was con8 taminated with cyanide and other toxins. 

9 (9) Johnson used her vigilance and activism to 

10 give low-income minority communities a voice and a 

11 stake in the environmental justice fight by bringing 

12 the conversation to personal, immediate, and urgent 

13 concerns which directly impact communities inhab14 ited by people of color. 

15 (10) Johnson also strove to hold both busi16 nesses and the government responsible for how their 

17 actions impact the environment. 

18 (11) Johnson was given the 1992 President’s 

19 Environment and Conservation Challenge Award in 

20 recognition of her environmental justice work. 

21 (12) Notably, Johnson was instrumental in 

22 pressuring President Bill Clinton to sign the Envi23 ronmental Justice Executive Order, which holds the 

24 Federal Government accountable for urban commu25 nities exposed to pollution. 


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1 (13) In 2004, sociologist David Naguib Pellow 

2 credited Johnson and the People for Community Re3 covery with putting ‘‘the South Side of Chicago on 

4 the radar screen for activists and policy makers 

5 around the United States who are concerned about 

6 environmental racism’’. 

7 (14) On January 12, 2011, the Illinois General 

8 Assembly, by way of a House Joint Resolution, des9 ignated ‘‘the portion of 130th Street from the 

10 Bishop Ford Freeway to State Street in Chicago as 

11 the ‘Hazel Johnson EJ Way’ ’’. 

12 (15) Johnson was a visionary, who was able to 

13 foresee the impacts of failing to address environ14 mental and social justice conditions. 

15 (16) Johnson’s work earned her the title of 

16 ‘‘mother of the environmental justice movement’’. 

17 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

18 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 

19 the House of Representatives and the President pro tem20 pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 

21 for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of the Con22 gress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemo23 ration to Hazel M. Johnson, in recognition of her achieve24 ments and contributions to the environmental justice 

25 movement. 


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1 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the 

2 presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary 

3 of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Sec4 retary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, 

5 devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec6 retary. 

7 (c) NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HIS8 TORY AND CULTURE.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 

10 gold medal under subsection (a), the gold medal 

11 shall be given to the National Museum of African 

12 American History and Culture of the Smithsonian 

13 Institution, where it shall be available for display as 

14 appropriate and made available for research. 

15 (2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

16 Congress that the gold medal received under para17 graph (1) should be made available for display else18 where, particularly at other appropriate locations as19 sociated with Hazel M. Johnson. 

20 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

21 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

22 bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 

23 under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at 

24 a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, 


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1 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, 

2 and the cost of the gold medal. 

3 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

4 (a) NATIONAL MEDALS.—The medals struck pursu5 ant to this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 

6 51 of title 31, United States Code. 

7 (b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of section 

8 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 

9 under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 

Æ 


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