I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 247 
To posthumously award a Congressional gold medal to Maya Angelou in 
recognition of her achievements and contributions to American culture 
and the civil rights movement. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 9, 2015 
Mrs. BEATTY (for herself, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. FATTAH, Ms. NORTON, Mr. 
DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, and Mr. FOSTER) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addi-
tion to the Committee on House Administration, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To posthumously award a Congressional gold medal to Maya 
Angelou in recognition of her achievements and contribu-
tions to American culture and the civil rights movement. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Maya Angelou Con-
gressional Gold Medal Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that: 
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(1) Dr. Maya Angelou, born Marguerite Ann 
Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 4, 1928, 
and raised in Arkansas, was a prominent and cele-
brated author, poet, educator, producer, actress, 
filmmaker, and civil rights activist. 
(2) Dr. Maya Angelou published a myriad of 
literary works enshrining in history her storied life 
as an icon of the civil rights movement. 
(3) Hailed for her talents as a performing artist 
at an early age, Dr. Maya Angelou toured Europe 
with a production of the Gershwin opera ‘‘Porgy 
And Bess’’ in 1955 and released her first album in 
1957. 
(4) Committed to furthering the work of Dr. 
Martin Luther King, Dr. Maya Angelou served as a 
leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Con-
ference during the Civil Rights Movement. 
(5) In 1969, Dr. Maya Angelou penned the 
autobiography ‘‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’’, 
which catapulted her to international acclaim for its 
vivid and honest depiction of the experience of Black 
women in the Jim Crow era. 
(6) Dr. Maya Angelou wrote the screenplay and 
composed the score for the 1972 film ‘‘Georgia, 
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Georgia’’; her script was the first by an African- 
American woman to be filmed. 
(7) Dr. Maya Angelou was the first African- 
American to serve as an Inaugural Poet, authoring 
and reciting the poem ‘‘Pulse of Morning’’ in 1993. 
(8) A trailblazer in literature and poetry, Dr. 
Maya Angelou bravely explored the ways in which 
socially marginalizing forces affected African-Amer-
ican women. 
(9) Dr. Maya Angelou was honored with the 
Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, the Lincoln 
Medal in 2008, and the National Medal of Arts in 
2000 for her exceptional contributions to American 
culture as an author and poet. 
(10) As a distinguished educator, Dr. Maya 
Angelou received over 30 honorary degrees and 
served as the Reynolds Professor of American Stud-
ies at Wake Forest University from 1982 to 2014. 
(11) Dr. Maya Angelou passed away on May 
28, 2014, in her North Carolina home at age 86, 
leaving behind a legacy of literary achievement and 
an indelible mark on the movement for civil rights. 
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 
the House of Representatives and the President pro tem-
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pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 
for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of Congress, 
of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration 
of Dr. Maya Angelou in recognition of her achievements 
and contributions to American culture and the civil rights 
movement. 
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purpose of the 
presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary 
of the Treasury (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the 
‘‘Secretary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable em-
blems, devices, and inscriptions to be determined by the 
Secretary. 
(c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 
gold medal in honor of Dr. Maya Angelou under 
subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given to the 
Smithsonian Institution, where it shall be available 
for display as appropriate and made available for re-
search. 
(2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 
Congress that the Smithsonian Institution shall 
make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) 
available for display, particularly at the National 
Museum of African American History and Culture, 
or for loan as appropriate so that it may be dis-
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