I

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1709

To authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf of the Congress

to Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. in recognition of his outstanding and enduring

contributions to the Nation.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MAY 5, 1999

Mr. RANGEL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Banking and Financial Services

A BILL

To authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf

of the Congress to Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. in recognition

of his outstanding and enduring contributions to the

Nation.

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

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

4 The Congress makes the following findings:

5 (1) Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. was born on Octo6 ber 8, 1941, in Greenville, South Carolina.

7 (2) In 1965 Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. joined the

8 civil rights movement full-time, beginning his activ-
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1 ism as a student leader in the sit-in movement and

2 continuing as a young organizer for the Southern

3 Christian Leadership Conference as an assistant to

4 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

5 (3) On June 30, 1968, Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.

6 became an ordained minister, having attended the

7 Chicago Theological Seminary.

8 (4) Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. served as the national

9 director for Operation Breadbasket and, in 1971 in

10 Chicago, Illinois, founded People United to Save Hu11 manity, known as PUSH.

12 (5) In 1984 Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. founded the

13 National Rainbow Coalition, a national social justice

14 organization devoted to political empowerment and

15 to expanding educational and employment opportuni16 ties for disadvantaged people and for communities of

17 color.

18 (6) In 1996 Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. merged the

19 National Rainbow Coalition and PUSH to continue

20 the philosophies of both organizations and to maxi21 mize their resources.

22 (7) Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. is, and has been for

23 more than 30 years, one of the foremost political fig24 ures in the United States, playing a pivotal role in

25 virtually every movement for human rights, civil
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1 rights, peace, gender equality, empowerment, and

2 economic and social justice.

3 (8) Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. has been and con4 tinues to be counted on to serve as a champion and

5 spokesman for a segment of the population whose

6 voices all too often are not heard.

7 (9) Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. has been called the

8 ‘‘conscience of the Nation’’ and the ‘‘great unifier’’,

9 challenging the United States to establish just and

10 humane priorities.

11 (10) Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. has led a myriad of

12 successful delegations, marches, and missions for

13 justice, peace, and reconciliation.

14 (11) Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. is a highly respected

15 world leader who has acted on many occasions as an

16 international diplomat.

17 (12) In 1984 Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. secured the

18 release of a captured Navy pilot, Lieutenant Robert

19 Goodman, who was shot down over Lebanon. He

20 also negotiated the release of 22 Americans and 26

21 Cubans in Cuba during 1984.

22 (13) In 1990 Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. won the re23 lease of hundreds of foreign nationals, including 47

24 Americans, being held in Iraq and Kuwait by Sad25 dam Hussein.
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1 (14) In October 1997 Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.

2 was appointed by President William Jefferson Clin3 ton and by Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright

4 as the Special Envoy of the President and the Sec5 retary of State for the Promotion of Democracy in

6 Africa.

7 (15) On May 2, 1999, Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.

8 obtained the negotiated release of Army Specialist

9 Steven M. Gonzales and Staff Sergeants Christopher

10 J. Stone and Andrew Ramirez, 3 United States sol11 diers who had spent 32 days in captivity in Yugo12 slavia as prisoners of war and hostages.

13 (16) Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. has dedicated his

14 life to the principles of freedom, peace, justice, inter15 national good will, and the struggle for civil rights

16 and equality for Americans and for all peoples, at

17 home and abroad.

18 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

19 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The President is

20 authorized to present, on behalf of the Congress, a gold

21 medal of appropriate design to Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. in

22 recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions

23 to the Nation.

24 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purpose of the

25 presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary
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1 of the Treasury shall strike a gold medal with suitable em2 blems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the

3 Secretary.

4 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATION.—Effective

5 February 1, 1999, there are authorized to be appropriated

6 $30,000 to carry out this section.

7 SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

8 (a) STRIKING AND SALE.—The Secretary of the

9 Treasury may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the

10 gold medal struck under section 2 under such regulations

11 as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient to

12 cover the cost thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use

13 of machinery, and overhead expenses, and the cost of the

14 gold medal.

15 (b) REIMBURSEMENT OF APPROPRIATION.—The ap16 propriation used to carry out section 2 shall be reimbursed

17 out of the proceeds of sales under subsection (a).

18 SEC. 4. NATIONAL MEDALS.

19 The medals struck under this Act are national medals

20 for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.

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