I 
113TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 715 
To posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal to Lena Horne in rec-
ognition of her achievements and contributions to American culture and 
the civil rights movement. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 14, 2013 
Mr. HASTINGS of Florida (for himself, Mr. CLAY, Ms. HAHN, Ms. LEE of 
California, Ms. FUDGE, Ms. CLARKE, Mr. MCGOVERN, and Mr. WATT) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Fi-
nancial Services 
A BILL 
To posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal to Lena 
Horne 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 ‘‘Lena Horne Recogni-
tion Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds as follows: 
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(1) Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was born on 
June 30, 1917, in Brooklyn, New York. At the age 
of 16, Lena Horne was hired as a dancer in the cho-
rus of Harlem’s famous Cotton Club, where she was 
introduced to such legendary jazz performers as 
Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Count Basie, Ethel 
Waters, and Billie Holiday. 
(2) In 1940, she became one of the first Afri-
can-American women to perform with an all-White 
band when she toured with Charlie Barnet’s jazz 
band as its featured singer. 
(3) She was discovered by a Metro-Goldwyn- 
Mayer (MGM) talent scout and became the first Af-
rican-American artist to sign a long-term contract 
with a major studio. 
(4) Despite her extraordinary beauty and tal-
ent, Lena Horne was often limited to minor acting 
roles because of her race. 
(5) Scenes in which she did sing were cut out 
when they were sent to local distributors in the 
South and studio executives cast another actress as 
Julie in the film version of ‘‘Show Boat’’ instead of 
Lena Horne because they did not want the show to 
star an African-American actress. However, Lena 
Horne dazzled audiences and critics in a number of 
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films, including ‘‘Cabin in the Sky’’ and ‘‘Stormy 
Weather’’. 
(6) During World War II, Lena Horne toured 
extensively with the United Service Organizations 
(USO) on the West Coast and in the South in sup-
port of the troops and expressed outrage about the 
way African-American soldiers were treated. 
(7) She refused to sing for segregated audiences 
or to groups in which German prisoners of war were 
seated in front of African-American servicemen. 
(8) During the period of McCarthyism in the 
1950s, Lena Horne was blacklisted as a communist 
for 7 years because of her civil rights activism and 
friendship with Paul Robeson and W.E.B. Du Bois. 
(9) In 1957, Lena Horne recorded Lena Horne 
at the Waldorf-Astoria, which reached the Top 10 
and became the best-selling album by a female sing-
er in RCA Victor’s history. 
(10) Lena Horne rose to international stardom 
and toured the world, sharing the stage with such 
names as Count Basie, Tony Bennett, Billy 
Eckstine, Vic Damone, and Harry Belafonte, and 
also starred in musical and television specials with 
such giants as Judy Garland, Bing Crosby, and 
Frank Sinatra. 
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(11) Lena Horne used her fame to become a 
powerful voice for civil rights and equality. 
(12) In 1963, she participated in the historic 
March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, at 
which Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his im-
mortal ‘‘I Have a Dream’’ speech. 
(13) Lena Horne also performed at rallies 
throughout the country for the National Council for 
Negro Women and worked with the National Asso-
ciation for the Advancement of Colored People 
(NAACP), of which she was a member from the age 
of 2, the Delta Sigma Theta sorority, and the Urban 
League. 
(14) Through the end of the 20th century, 
Lena Horne continued to entertain large audiences 
of all ages and backgrounds. In 1981, she captivated 
audiences with her one-woman Broadway show, 
‘‘Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music’’, which en-
joyed a 14-month run before going on tour, and 
earned her a special Tony Award and two Grammy 
Awards. 
(15) In 2002, 73 years after the Academy 
Awards were first awarded, Halle Berry became the 
first African-American woman to win an Oscar for 
Best Actress and recognized in her acceptance 
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speech how Lena Horne paved the way for her and 
other African-American actresses. 
(16) Lena Horne passed away in New York 
City on May 9, 2010, at the age of 92. 
(17) Lena Horne was an entertainer, activist, 
and mother who used her beauty, talent, and intel-
ligence to fight racial discrimination and injustice 
and rise to international stardom. 
(18) A symbol of elegance and grace, she enter-
tained people of all walks of life for over 60 years, 
and broke barriers for future generations. 
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 Lena Horne in recognition of her achievements 
and contributions to American culture and the civil rights 
movement. 
(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. 
SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 
The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 
bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 2, 
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. 
(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. 
SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF 
SALE. 
(a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is 
authorized to be charged against the United States Mint 
Public Enterprise Fund, such amounts as may be nec-
essary to pay for the costs of the medals struck pursuant 
to this Act. 
(b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the 
sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 
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