I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3334 
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 
JULY 20, 2017 
Mrs. BEATTY (for herself, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. CONYERS, Ms. 
FUDGE, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, Mr. JEFFRIES, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. 
KELLY of Illinois, Ms. LEE, Ms. NORTON, Mr. RUSH, Mr. STIVERS, Mr. 
VEASEY, and Mr. YARMUTH) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the 
Committee on House Administration, for a period to be subsequently de-
termined 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’’. 
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that: 
(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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