I
107TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4531
To award a congressional gold medal to Dr. Dorothy Height in recognition
of her many contributions to the Nation.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 18, 2002
Ms. WATSON of California introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Financial Services
A BILL
To award a congressional gold medal to Dr. Dorothy Height
in recognition of her many contributions to the Nation.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FINDINGS.
The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Dr. Dorothy Irene Height was born March
24, 1912 to James Edward Height and Fannie
(Borroughs) Height in Richmond, Virginia and
raised in Rankin, Pennsylvania.
(2) Dr. Height is recognized as one of the pre-
eminent social and civil rights activists of her time,
particularly in the struggle for equality, social jus-
tice, and human rights for all peoples.
(3) Beginning as a civil rights advocate in the
1930s, she soon gained prominence through her tire-
less efforts to promote interracial schooling, to reg-
ister and educate voters, and to increase the visi-
bility and status of women in our society.
(4) She has labored to provide hope for inner-
city children and their families, and she can claim
responsibility for many of the advances made by
women and African-Americans over the course of
this century.
(5) Her public career spans over 65 years.
(6) Dr. Height was a valued consultant on
human and civil rights issues to First Lady Eleanor
Roosevelt and she encouraged President Eisenhower
to desegregate the Nation’s schools and President
Johnson to appoint African-American women to sub-
Cabinet posts.
(7) Dr. Height has been President of the Na-
tional Council of Negro Women (NCNW) since
1957, a position to which she was appointed upon
the retirement of Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune, one of
the most influential African-American women in
United States history.
(8) The National Council of Negro Women is
currently the umbrella organization for 250 local
groups and 38 national groups engaged in economic
development and women’s issues.
(9) Under Dr. Height’s leadership, the National
Council of Negro Women implemented a number of
new and innovative programs and initiatives, includ-
ing the following:
(A) Operation Woman Power, a project to
expand business ownership by women and to
provide funds for vocational training.
(B) Leadership training for African-Amer-
ican women in the rural South.
(C) The Black Family Reunion, a nation-
wide annual gathering to encourage, renew and
celebrate the concept of not only the Black fam-
ily but all families.
(D) The Women’s Center for Education
and Career Advancement to empower minority
women in nontraditional careers.
(E) The Bethune Museum and Archives, a
museum devoted to African-American women’s
history.
(10) Dr. Height has been at the forefront of
AIDS education, both nationally and internationally;
under her direction, the National Council of Negro
Women established offices in West Africa and South
Africa and worked to improve the conditions of
women in the developing world.
(11) Dr. Height has been central in the success
of 2 other influential women’s organizations, as fol-
lows:
(A) As president and executive board mem-
ber of Delta Sigma Theta, Dr. Height left the
sorority more efficient and globally focused with
a centralized headquarters.
(B) Her work with the Young Women’s
Christian Association (YWCA) led to its inte-
gration and more active participation in the
civil rights movement.
(12) As a member of the ‘‘Big Six’’ civil rights
leaders with Whitney Young, A. Phillip Randolph,
Martin Luther King, Jr., James Farmer, and Roy
Wilkins, Dr. Height was the only female at the table
when the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and oth-
ers made plans for the civil rights movement.
(13) Dr. Height is the recipient of many
awards and accolades for her efforts on behalf of
women’s rights, including the following:
(A) The Spingarn Award, the NAACP’s
highest honor for civil rights contributions.
(B) The Presidential Medal of Freedom
awarded by President Clinton.
(C) The John F. Kennedy Memorial
Award from the National Council of Jewish
Women.
(D) The Ministerial Interfaith Association
Award for her contributions to interfaith, inter-
racial, and ecumenical movements for over 30
years;
(E) The Lovejoy Award, the highest rec-
ognition by the Grand Lodge of the Benevolent
and Protective Order of Elks of the World for
outstanding contributions to human relations.
(F) The Ladies Home Journal Woman of
the Year Award in recognition for her work for
human rights.
(G) The William L. Dawson Award pre-
sented by the Congressional Black Caucus for
decades of public service to people of color and
particularly women.
(H) The Citizens Medal Award for distin-
guished service presented by President Reagan.
(I) The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Free-
dom Medal awarded by the Franklin and Elea-
nor Roosevelt Institute.
(14) Dr. Dorothy Height has established a last-
ing legacy of public service that has been an invalu-
able contribution to the progress of this Nation.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The President is
authorized to present, on behalf of the Congress, to Dr.
Dorothy Irene Height a gold medal of appropriate design
in recognition of her many contributions to the Nation.
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purpose of the
presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary
of the Treasury (hereafter 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.
SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
Under such regulations as the Secretary may pre-
scribe, the Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in
bronze of the gold medals struck under section 2 at a price
sufficient to cover the costs of the medals, including labor,
materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.
SEC. 4. NATIONAL MEDALS.
The medals struck under this Act are national medals
for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; PROCEEDS
OF SALE.
(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is
hereby authorized to be charged against the United States
Mint Public Enterprise Fund an amount not to exceed
$30,000 to pay for the cost of the medal authorized under
section 2.
(b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the
sale of duplicate bronze medals under section 3 shall be
deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise
Fund.
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