II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4360 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Edward J. Dwight, Jr., the first 

African American astronaut candidate in the United States. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 16, 2024 

Mr. BENNET (for himself and Mr. HICKENLOOPER) introduced the following 

bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, 

Housing, and Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Edward J. Dwight, 

Jr., the first African American astronaut candidate in 

the United States. 

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 ‘‘Edward J. Dwight, 

5 Jr. Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2024’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Edward Joseph Dwight, Jr., was born on 

9 September 9, 1933, to Georgia Baker Dwight and 


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1 Edward Dwight, Sr., in Kansas City, Kansas. Ed 

2 Senior had been a second baseman and center fielder 

3 for the Kansas City Monarchs and played on other 

4 all-Black teams from 1924 to 1937. Georgia was a 

5 devoted mother who enrolled her son in a Head 

6 Start type program at the age of 2 and made sure 

7 to expose her children to as much culture as she 

8 could. 

9 (2) Edward Joseph Dwight, Jr., grew up with 

10 a passion for art and airplanes. 

11 (3) Edward became the first African American 

12 male to graduate from Bishop Ward Catholic High 

13 School in 1951. He then earned an associate degree 

14 in engineering in 1953 from Kansas City Junior 

15 College. That same year he left to join the Air Force 

16 and began flight training. 

17 (4) After completing flight training, he served 

18 as a military pilot and obtained a degree in aero19 nautical engineering from Arizona State University. 

20 During his career as an officer in the Air Force, Ed21 ward served at bases in Texas, Missouri, and Ari22 zona, developing technical manuals and training fel23 low pilots on various instruments, as he accumulated 

24 flight hours. 


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1 (5) Edward recalled, ‘‘I was the only Black offi2 cer pilot just about every base I was stationed’’ and 

3 that even at 5’4’’, he ‘‘got award after award’’. 

4 While in the Air Force, Edward earned his Bachelor 

5 of Science in aeronautical engineering from Arizona 

6 State University in 1957. 

7 (6) Edward flew some of the most advanced 

8 aircraft of the era and ultimately accumulated over 

9 9,000 hours of flight time, 2,000 in high-perform10 ance jets. His engineering background and extensive 

11 training opened the door for him to enter the test 

12 pilot school where the most successful trainees be13 come astronauts. 

14 (7) Edward was chosen by President John F. 

15 Kennedy to enter training as an experimental test 

16 pilot. The Kennedy administration knew that a 

17 Black astronaut would be an inspiring display of op18 portunity for African Americans across the country. 

19 (8) On November 4, 1961, Edward received a 

20 letter inviting him to join the astronaut training pro21 gram. He followed the advice of his mother and ac22 cepted the invitation to take the first steps toward 

23 improving diversity and talent in the United States 

24 space program by becoming the first African Amer25 ican astronaut candidate in the United States. 


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1 (9) Edward went to the Aerospace Research 

2 Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base in Cali3 fornia to begin training. 

4 (10) This was a time of uncertainty where the 

5 color of a person’s skin mattered more than his or 

6 her skill. 

7 (11) The astronaut candidacy of Edwards be8 came cover news on Black magazines such as Jet, 

9 Ebony, and Sepia. 

10 (12) At Edwards Air Force Base, however, Ed11 ward experienced prejudice and scorn, as he re12 counted in his autobiography ‘‘Soaring on the Wings 

13 of a Dream: The Untold Story of America’s First 

14 Black Astronaut Candidate’’. 

15 (13) Edward completed the experimental test 

16 pilot course and entered aerospace research pilot 

17 training in preparation for astronaut duties. He suc18 cessfully completed the course and continued to per19 form duties as a fully qualified aerospace research 

20 pilot. 

21 (14) On October 18, 1963, the National Aero22 nautics and Space Administration (referred to in 

23 this section as ‘‘NASA’’) announced 14 astronauts 

24 for Group 3, but Edward did not make the list. 


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1 (15) While in training, Edward faced obstacles 

2 due to his race, which derailed his chance to be the 

3 first African American in space. His fight for equal4 ity was one of many trailblazing battles happening 

5 during the Civil Rights Era. 

6 (16) The assassination of President Kennedy, 

7 the main sponsor in the White House of Edward 

8 and the space journey, led to his voluntary separa9 tion from the Air Force. 

10 (17) In 1966, Edward resigned from the Air 

11 Force as a captain and moved to Denver, Colorado. 

12 (18) After the Kennedy assassination, pressure 

13 on NASA to fly a Black astronaut waned, and the 

14 first African American would not fly in space until 

15 Guion Bluford flew with the crew of NASA’s eighth 

16 space flight on the Space Shuttle orbiter Challenger 

17 in 1983. 

18 (19) After successful careers in the Air Force, 

19 and as an IBM systems engineer, restauranteur, 

20 aviation consultant, real estate, and construction en21 trepreneur, Edward dedicated the last 43 years sole22 ly to his artistic endeavors. 

23 (20) In 1974, George Brown, the first African 

24 American lieutenant governor of Colorado and a 

25 member of the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II, 


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1 chose Edward to create a bronze bust of him to dis2 play in the Colorado State Capitol. 

3 (21) Being a neophyte to bronze sculpting, and 

4 at the age of 42, Edward enrolled at the University 

5 of Denver in the Masters of Fine Arts program. 

6 While at the University of Denver, he became pro7 ficient in metal casting and managed the foundry at 

8 the school while also teaching other students. He re9 ceived his Master of Fine Arts in 1977. 

10 (22) In 1975, while at the University of Den11 ver, Edward received a commission from the Colo12 rado Centennial Commission to create a series of 

13 bronzes depicting the contribution of Blacks to the 

14 American Frontier West. The series exhibited for 

15 several years throughout the United States, gaining 

16 widespread acceptance and critical acclaim. 

17 (23) In 1979, the National Park Service en18 couraged Edward to create a bronze series por19 traying the history and historical roots of jazz. The 

20 series was created and entitled ‘‘Jazz: An American 

21 Art Form’’, which consisted of over 70 bronzes de22 picting the evolution of jazz from its African origins 

23 to the fusion of contemporary music. 

24 (24) Since his art career began in 1976, Ed25 ward has become one of most prolific and insightful 


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1 sculptors in the United States. As of the date of en2 actment of this Act, Edward has completed more 

3 than 115 large-scale commissioned sculpture instal4 lations. His pieces are collected by museums, institu5 tions and art enthusiasts around the world, includ6 ing the Smithsonian. Ed Dwight Studios, Inc., in 

7 Denver, is now one of the largest privately-owned 

8 production facilities in the western United States. 

9 (25) Edward is the recipient of numerable liv10 ing legends awards from around the country for his 

11 achievements in space activities and contributions in 

12 art and Black history. 

13 (26) On August 5, 2020, in recognition of his 

14 accomplishments as a scientist, test pilot, and sculp15 tor, the Space Force inducted him as an honorary 

16 member. A permanent display is installed at the 

17 Pentagon in honor of these achievements. 

18 (27) In a ceremony at the Pentagon, General 

19 Jay Raymond, Chief of Space Operations of the 

20 Space Force, presented Edward with the Com21 mander’s Public Service Award and inducted him as 

22 an honorary member of the Space Force, for his 

23 contributions to the United States, space, and his24 tory during times of overt racism in the field of 

25 science. Astronaut Victor Glover honored Edward by 


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1 carrying this award with him to the International 

2 Space Station during his Crew–1 mission. Despite 

3 all that he had to overcome, Edward was an example 

4 of excellence, embarking on a nationwide speaking 

5 tour encouraging young people to study science, en6 gineering, and math. 

7 (28) In 2021, the Minor Planet Center, an or8 ganization affiliated with the International Astro9 nomical Union, named an asteroid after Edward. 

10 NASA has honored him by sending his sculpture 

11 ‘‘Pioneer Woman’’ to space on Exploration Flight 

12 Test–1 in 2014. 

13 (29) On November 3, 2022, Denver Inter14 national Airport opened an exhibit titled ‘‘Soaring 

15 on the Wings of a Dream,’’ the title of Edward’s 

16 book. The exhibit is on the life of Edward, beginning 

17 with childhood and ending with adulthood. It will be 

18 on display for 5 months. 

19 (30) The National Geographic documentary, 

20 ‘‘The Space Race’’, weaves together the stories of 

21 Black astronauts seeking to break the bonds of so22 cial injustice to reach for the stars, including Ed23 ward, Guion Bluford, Charles Bolden, Mae C. 

24 Jemison, Victor Glover, among many others, includ25 ing Leland Melvin, one of the producers of the film. 


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1 (31) On May 19, 2024, Edward, sponsored by 

2 Space for Humanity, will finally travel to space on 

3 board Blue Origin New Shepard rocket. At 90 years 

4 old, Edward will be the oldest person in space and 

5 will train with his crewmates for 2 days before liftoff 

6 at the Blue Origin Launch Site One in western 

7 Texas. 

8 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

9 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 

10 the House of Representatives and the President pro tem11 pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 

12 for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a single 

13 gold medal of appropriate design to Edward J. Dwight, 

14 the first African-American astronaut candidate in the 

15 United States, in recognition of— 

16 (1) his historic service to the United States; 

17 (2) the example of excellence during times of 

18 struggle and overt racism; and 

19 (3) his contributions in art and Black history. 

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

21 presentation described in subsection (a), the Secretary of 

22 the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’) 

23 shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, 

24 and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary. The 


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1 design shall bear an image of, and an inscription of the 

2 name of, Edward J. Dwight, Jr. 

3 (c) DISPOSITION OF MEDAL.—Following the presen4 tation described in subsection (a), the gold medal shall be 

5 given to Edward J. Dwight, Jr., or, if unavailable, to Cur6 tis Christopher Dwight. 

7 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

8 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

9 bronze of the gold medal struck under section 3, at a price 

10 sufficient to cover the costs thereof, including labor, mate11 rials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 

12 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

13 (a) NATIONAL MEDALS.—Medals struck under this 

14 Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 

15 31, United States Code. 

16 (b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of sections 

17 5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all medals 

18 struck under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic 

19 items. 

20 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF 

21 SALE. 

22 (a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is 

23 authorized to be charged against the United States Mint 

24 Public Enterprise Fund such amounts as may be necVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Jul 08, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4360.IS S4360

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1 essary to pay for the costs of the medals struck under 

2 this Act. 

3 (b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the 

4 sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 

5 4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public 

6 Enterprise Fund. 

Æ 


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