as the ‘‘Second Confiscation Act’’) (12 Stat. 589; 
chapter 195), and the Act of July 17, 1862 (com-
monly known as the ‘‘Military Act of 1862’’) (12 
Stat. 597; chapter 201), were the first official au-
thorizations to employ African Americans in the 
Union Army. 
(7) It was not until January 1, 1863, the effec-
tive date of the Emancipation Proclamation issued 
by President Lincoln, that the Union Army was or-
dered to receive African-American men. 
(8) On May 22, 1863, the United States War 
Department issued General Order Number 143, 
which established the Bureau of Colored Troops for 
the recruitment and organization of regiments of the 
Union Army composed of African-American men, 
called the United States Colored Troops (referred to 
in this section as ‘‘USCT’’). 
(9) Leaders such as Frederick Douglass encour-
aged African Americans to enlist to advance the 
cause of citizenship. ‘‘Once let the black man get 
upon his person the brass letters, ‘U.S.’, let him get 
an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoul-
der and bullets in his pocket, there is no power on 
[E]arth that can deny that he has earned the right 
to citizenship.’’, wrote Douglass. 
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(10) African-American sailors constituted a sig-
nificant segment of the Union Navy, making up 20 
percent of the total enlisted force of the Navy. 
(11) Although there were rank restrictions on 
African Americans in the Navy before the Civil War, 
this policy changed after the establishment of the 
USCT, when the Union Navy started to compete 
with the Union Army for enlistment of African 
Americans. 
(12) Yet, in practice, most African Americans 
could not advance beyond lowest ranks of ‘‘boy’’ and 
‘‘landsman.’’ 
(13) African-American soldiers and sailors 
served with distinction, honor, and bravery amid ra-
cial discrimination and adverse circumstances, in-
cluding the risk of enslavement and torture if cap-
tured. 
(14) Eighteen members of the USCT and 8 Af-
rican-American sailors were awarded the Medal of 
Honor, the highest honor in the United States for 
bravery in combat. 
(15) For generations after the Civil War, the 
contributions of African Americans in the Civil War 
were excluded from historical memory. 
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(16) Public Law No. 102–412 (106 Stat. 2104) 
authorized the establishment of a memorial on Fed-
eral land in the District of Columbia to honor Afri-
can Americans who served with Union forces during 
the Civil War. 
(17) This memorial, featuring a bronze statue 
of USCT soldiers, an African-American sailor and 
family, is surrounded by the Wall of Honor, which 
lists the names of the members of the USCT. 
(18) The African American Civil War Museum 
is located in the District of Columbia. 
(19) Patriots and heroes who rose in service to 
a Nation that would not fully recognize them, the 
African Americans who served the Union during the 
Civil War deserve our recognition for their contribu-
tions to the grant of emancipation and citizenship 
for nearly 4,000,000 enslaved people and the preser-
vation of the Union. 
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 Congress, of a gold 
medal of appropriate design to the African Americans who 
served with Union forces during the Civil War, collectively, 
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