Snyder Bill Would Mint Coin To Mark 50th Anniversary
Of The Desegregation Of Little Rock Central High Washington - U.S. Representative Vic Snyder has introduced a bill to require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of the Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Congress may authorize two commemorative coins for each year, and legislation to mint a coin must earn the signatures of 2/3 of the House, 290 co-sponsors, before the full U.S. House of Representatives can consider it. Snyder’s bill has 311 co-sponsors. One of the two coin bill positions has already been filled for the 400th anniversary of Jamestown. Snyder hopes his bill will fill the other. “It is a competitive process, but I think we are making progress,” Congressman Snyder said. “The desegregation of Little Rock Central High School was a monumental day in our state’s, and our nation’s history. A commemorative coin issued by the U.S. Mint seems like an appropriate way to honor its 50th anniversary. In 1957, Little Rock Central High School was the site of the first major national test for the implementation of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka decision and became the international symbol of the end of racially segregated public schools. The desegregation of Central High by nine African American students was influential to the Civil Rights Movement, and recognized by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as such a significant event that in May 1958 he attended the graduation of the first African American from Little Rock Central High. Moreover, it changed American history by providing an example on which to build greater equality, and ultimately a better America. Sale of the coin is hoped to raise as much as $5 million, which could be used for educational programs and capital improvements at the Little Rock Central High National Historic Site. “I owe a sincere thank you to Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor for introducing identical legislation in the U.S. Senate, and to Congressman John Boozman of the 3rd Congressional District for his help in pushing the bill along.” -30- |