H.R. 1817

119th CONGRESS 1st Session

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Arturo Alfonso Schomburg, in recognition of his pioneering work in collecting and preserving the history and culture of the African diaspora.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES · March 3, 2025 · Sponsor: Ms. Velázquez

Table of contents

• H.R. 1817
  • SEC. 1. Short title
  • SEC. 2. Findings
  • SEC. 3. Congressional gold medal
  • SEC. 4. Duplicate medals
  • SEC. 5. Status of medals
  • SEC. 6. Authority To use fund amounts; proceeds of sale

SEC. 1. Short title

• This Act may be cited as the Arturo Alfonso Schomburg Congressional Gold Medal Act.

SEC. 2. Findings

• Congress makes the following findings:
  • Arturo Alfonso Schomburg was born on January 24, 1874, in Santurce, Puerto Rico, to a Puerto Rican father of German descent and an Afro-Caribbean mother from St. Croix.
  • In his youth, a teacher told Schomburg that people of African descent had no history, heroes, or accomplishments, which inspired him to dedicate his life to proving this notion wrong by collecting evidence of the contributions of Africans and their descendants.
  • At the age of 17, Schomburg immigrated to New York City, where he became an active member of the intellectual community during the Harlem Renaissance, contributing significantly to the promotion of African and African American culture and history.
  • Schomburg amassed a personal collection of over 10,000 items related to Black history and the African diaspora, which he made accessible to the public.
  • His collection featured original newspapers published by Frederick Douglass, poems by Phillis Wheatley, letters from Toussaint Louverture, books and journals by Paul Cuffe, and music composed by Chevalier de Saint-Georges.
  • During the 1920s, Schomburg was an active member of the Negro Society for Historical Research and the American Negro Academy, writing on the history of the global African diaspora and Cuban poets of African descent.
  • In 1926, the New York Public Library acquired Schomburg’s collection, which became the foundation for the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, a world-renowned institution for the study of the global Black experience.
  • Schomburg’s archive has grown to more than 10 million items.
  • Schomburg’s efforts have inspired generations of scholars, writers, and artists to explore and celebrate the rich history and culture of the African diaspora.
  • The Congressional Gold Medal would be an appropriate way to honor Schomburg’s legacy and his role in laying the foundation for future scholarship and global recognition of Black contributions to society.

SEC. 3. Congressional gold medal

• (a) Award authorized
  • The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design to Arturo Alfonso Schomburg, in recognition of his pioneering work in collecting and preserving the history and culture of the African diaspora.
• (b) Design and striking
  • For the purposes of the presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the ) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.
• (c) Smithsonian institution
  • (1) In general
    • Following the award of the gold medal under subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given to the National Museum of African American History and Culture of the Smithsonian Institution, where it shall be displayed as appropriate and made available for research.
  • (2) Sense of congress
    • It is the sense of Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) available for display elsewhere, particularly at other locations and events associated with Arturo Alfonso Schomburg.

SEC. 4. Duplicate medals

• The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3, at a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.

SEC. 5. Status of medals

• (a) National medals
  • The medals struck pursuant to this Act are national medals for purposes of of title 31, United States Code. chapter 51
• (b) Numismatic items
  • or purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 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 necessary to pay for the costs of the medals struck under this Act.
• (b) Proceeds of sale
  • Amounts received from the sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.