I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2130 
To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Myrlie Evers-Williams, in recognition 
of the great contributions and ultimate sacrifice she and her husband, 
the assassinated civil rights leader Medgar Wiley Evers, made in the 
fight for racial equality in the United States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 25, 2017 
Mr. HARPER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Myrlie Evers-Wil-
liams, in recognition of the great contributions and ulti-
mate sacrifice she and her husband, the assassinated 
civil rights leader Medgar Wiley Evers, made in the 
fight for racial equality in the United States. 
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 ‘‘Civil Rights Legacy 
of Medgar Wiley Evers Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following: 
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(1) An integral part of the fight for racial 
equality, Medgar Wiley Evers, was born July 2, 
1925, in Decatur, Mississippi, to James and Jessie 
Evers. 
(2) Faithfully serving his country, Medgar 
Evers willingly left high school to join the Army at 
the start of World War II. 
(3) After the conclusion of the war, Mr. Evers 
returned home to Mississippi, completed high school, 
enrolled in Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical Col-
lege (presently known as Alcorn State University) 
and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business 
Administration. 
(4) While at Alcorn State University, Medgar 
Evers met and married fellow Alcorn student, Myrlie 
Beasley, of Vicksburg, Mississippi. 
(5) Upon graduation, Myrlie and Medgar Evers 
moved to Mound Bayou, Mississippi, where Medgar 
held a job with Magnolia Mutual Life Insurance 
Company, and began establishing local chapters of 
the National Association for the Advancement of 
Colored People (‘‘NAACP’’) throughout the Mis-
sissippi Delta. 
(6) Having been so moved by the immense suf-
fering of African-Americans in Mississippi, Medgar 
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Evers felt compelled to fight to change the cir-
cumstances and challenges facing them and, in 
1954, Medgar Evers became the first known Afri-
can-American to apply to the University of Mis-
sissippi School of Law. Mr. Evers was denied enroll-
ment. 
(7) In 1954, Medgar Evers became the first 
Field Secretary for the Mississippi chapter of the 
NAACP. 
(8) In the capacities of his new position, 
Medgar Evers hosted numerous voter registration ef-
forts in Mississippi and, as a result of these activi-
ties, received numerous threats against his life. 
(9) Despite these threats, Mr. Evers carried on 
his work with dedication and courage, organizing 
rallies, building membership within the NAACP, and 
traveling around the country educating the public on 
the fight for Civil Rights. 
(10) Medgar and Myrlie Evers’ passion for 
quality education for all children led them to file suit 
against the Jackson, Mississippi, public school sys-
tem gaining him attention with the national media 
as a leader of the Civil Rights Movement in Mis-
sissippi. 
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(11) As a result of his continued and ongoing 
efforts—rallies, sit-ins, and protests—to stand up 
for the rights of African-Americans in Mississippi, 
Mr. Evers was arrested, beaten, and jailed with his 
due process rights denied. 
(12) The senseless and abhorrent violence 
against Mr. Evers reached its pinnacle on June 12, 
1963, when he was violently shot in front of his 
home and died shortly afterwards in a local hospital, 
mere hours after President John F. Kennedy had 
made a national televised speech from the Oval Of-
fice calling for full racial integration in America. 
The Civil Rights Act was enacted the following year. 
(13) As a veteran, Evers was buried with full 
military honors at Arlington National Cemetery. 
(14) On June 23, 1963, Byron De La Beck-
with, a member of the White Citizens’ Council, was 
arrested for Evers’ murder, but juries in 1964, com-
posed solely of White men, twice deadlocked on De 
La Beckwith’s guilt, resulting in mistrials. 
(15) Following two trials resulting in acquittal, 
in 1990, Mrs. Evers convinced Mississippi prosecu-
tors to reopen Medgar Evers’ murder case, and a 
new trial led to the conviction and life imprisonment 
of Medgar Evers’ killer in 1994. 
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(16) It is befitting that Congress bestow the 
highest civilian honor, the Congressional Gold 
Medal, to Myrlie in recognition of the great con-
tributions and ultimate sacrifice she and her hus-
band, the assassinated civil rights leader Medgar 
Wiley Evers, made in the fight for racial equality, 
which tragically led to his assassination, but also 
was a major catalyst in passage and enactment of 
the Civil Rights Act in 1964. 
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 presentation, on behalf of the Congress, of a gold 
medal of appropriate design to Myrlie Evers-Williams, in 
recognition of the great contributions and ultimate sac-
rifice she and her husband, the assassinated civil rights 
leader Medgar Wiley Evers, made in the fight for racial 
equality in 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, 
devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec-
retary. 
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(c) AWARD OF MEDAL.—Following the award of the 
gold medal under subsection (a), the medal shall be given 
to the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, where it shall be 
available for display or temporary loan to be displayed 
elsewhere, as appropriate. 
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 MEDAL. 
(a) NATIONAL MEDAL.—The gold medal struck pur-
suant to this Act is a national medal for purposes of chap-
ter 51 of title 31, United States Code. 
(b) NUMISMATIC ITEM.—For purposes of section 
5134 of title 31, United States Code, the gold medal 
struck under this Act shall be considered to be a numis-
matic item. 
Æ 
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