I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1968 
To posthumously award a Congressional gold medal to Shirley Chisholm. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 28, 2019 
Mr. JEFFRIES (for himself, Mr. CLYBURN, Ms. WATERS, Ms. CLARKE of New 
York, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. ALLRED, Ms. BASS, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. BISHOP 
of Georgia, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Mr. BRINDISI, Mr. BROWN of Mary-
land, Ms. BROWNLEY of California, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mr. CARSON of 
Indiana, Mr. CASTEN of Illinois, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Ms. CLARK of 
Massachusetts, Mr. CLAY, Mr. CISNEROS, Mr. COHEN, Mr. COX of Cali-
fornia, Mr. CUMMINGS, Ms. DAVIDS
of Kansas, Ms. DEAN, Mr. 
DELGADO, Ms. DELAURO, Mrs. DEMINGS, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. ESPAILLAT, 
Ms. FUDGE, Miss GONZA´LEZ-COLO´N of Puerto Rico, Mr. GREEN of 
Texas, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Ms. 
HILL of California, Ms. NORTON, Ms. KENDRA S. HORN of Oklahoma, 
Mr. HORSFORD, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. JAYAPAL, Ms. JOHNSON of 
Texas, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. KING of New York, Mrs. LAW-
RENCE, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Ms. LEE of California, Mrs. LEE of Ne-
vada, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mrs. LOWEY, Mrs. 
CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of 
New York, Mrs. MCBATH, Mr. MEEKS, Ms. MOORE, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. 
MORELLE, Mrs. MURPHY, Mr. NADLER, Mr. NEGUSE, Ms. OCASIO-COR-
TEZ, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. PLASKETT, Ms. PRESSLEY, Miss RICE of New 
York, Mr. RICHMOND, Mr. ROSE of New York, Mr. RUSH, Mr. SAN 
NICOLAS, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. DAVID SCOTT 
of Georgia, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. SEWELL of Alabama, Mr. STANTON, Mr. 
SUOZZI, Ms. TITUS, Mrs. TRAHAN, Mr. TRONE, Mr. THOMPSON of Mis-
sissippi, Mr. TONKO, Ms. UNDERWOOD, Mr. VAN DREW, Mr. VEASEY, 
Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. 
ZELDIN, Mr. CLEAVER, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Ms. SPEIER, Mrs. 
NAPOLITANO, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. GABBARD, Ms. WASSERMAN 
SCHULTZ, Mr. MALINOWSKI, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, 
Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. MENG, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. GONZALEZ of Texas, Ms. 
KUSTER of New Hampshire, and Mrs. HAYES) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in 
addition to the Committee on House Administration, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
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of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee con-
cerned 
A BILL 
To posthumously award a Congressional gold medal to 
Shirley Chisholm. 
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 ‘‘Shirley Chisholm Con-
gressional Gold Medal Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds as follows: 
(1) In 1968, Shirley Chisholm became the first 
African-American woman elected to Congress where 
she served until 1982. 
(2) Shirley Chisholm inspired and led the 
march of political achievement by African-Americans 
and women in the three decades since she ran for 
the Presidency of the United States. 
(3) Her election to Congress and her candidacy 
for the Presidency raised the profile and aspirations 
of all African-Americans and women in the field of 
politics. 
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(4) Shirley Chisholm was recognized for her ac-
tivism, independence, and groundbreaking achieve-
ments in politics during and after the civil rights 
era. 
(5) Shirley Chisholm was born in Brooklyn, 
New York, on November 30, 1924, attended Brook-
lyn College, and earned a Master’s degree from Co-
lumbia University. 
(6) Shirley Chisholm worked in education and 
social services before being elected to the New York 
State Assembly in 1964. 
(7) Shirley Chisholm established the Unity 
Democratic Club in 1960, which played a significant 
role in rallying Black and Hispanic voters in New 
York City. 
(8) In 1969, Shirley Chisholm began her service 
in the 91st Congress, representing Brooklyn’s 12th 
Congressional District in the United States House of 
Representatives. 
(9) During her service in the House of Rep-
resentatives, Shirley Chisholm promoted the employ-
ment of women in Congress and was vocal in her 
support of civil rights, women’s rights, and the poor, 
while fervently opposing the Vietnam War. 
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(10) In 1972, Shirley Chisholm was the first 
African-American to seek the nomination of a major 
party for President of the United States. 
(11) Shirley Chisholm was a co-founder of the 
National Organization for Women. 
(12) An historic figure in American political 
history, Shirley Chisholm died at the age of 80 in 
Ormond Beach, Florida, on New Year’s Day 2005. 
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 
the House of Representatives and the President pro tem-
pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 
for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of the Con-
gress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemo-
ration of Shirley Chisholm, in recognition of her activism, 
independence, and groundbreaking achievements in poli-
tics, her election as the first African-American woman in 
the Congress, and her campaign to be the first African- 
American to gain the nomination of a major political party 
for President of 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 ‘‘Sec-
retary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, 
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devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec-
retary. 
(c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 
gold medal referred to in subsection (a), the gold 
medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, 
where it will be displayed as appropriate and made 
available for research. 
(2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 
Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should 
make the gold medal received under this Act avail-
able for display elsewhere, particularly at other loca-
tions and events associated with Shirley Chisholm. 
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 pursu-
ant to this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 
51 of title 31, United States Code. 
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(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. 
Æ 
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