[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 85 (Wednesday, June 11, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7720-S7721]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. MIKULSKI (for herself, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. 
        Edwards, Mr. Lautenberg, Mrs. Clinton, and Mr. Corzine):
  S. 1233. A bill to authorize assistance for the National Great Blacks 
in Wax Museum and Justice Learning Center; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.

  Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the National Great 
Black Americans Commemoration Act. I am proud to sponsor this 
legislation. Black Americans have a rich history that must be cherished 
and remembered. This bill will honor African American leaders from 
across the country--some who are well known, and others who are almost 
forgotten--by helping to preserve their names, faces, and stories for 
generations to come.
  This legislation will provide Federal assistance to expand exhibits 
and educational programs at the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum and 
Justice Learning Center in Baltimore, Maryland. The museum showcases 
the lives of great Black Americans who have proudly served the United 
States--from civil servants like Mary McLeod Bethune, to military 
heroes like Colin Powell, to Congressional leaders like Senator Edward 
Brooke, R-MA, and civil rights leaders like Rosa Parks. Some are 
household names, like Frederick Douglass and Dr. Martin Luther King, 
Jr. Yet many more are unfamiliar, like the 22 African Americans who 
served in Congress in the 1800s. It's time we give these pioneers the 
recognition they deserve.
  Maryland is proud to be home to so many important figures in black 
history. From the dark days of slavery through the civil rights 
movement, Marylanders have led the way. The brilliant Frederick 
Douglass was the voice of the voiceless in the struggle against 
slavery. The courageous Harriet Tubman delivered 300 slaves to freedom 
on the Underground Railroad. The great Thurgood Marshall argued the 
Brown v. Board of Education Case before the Supreme Court, and later 
became a Supreme Court Justice himself.
  Maryland is home to contemporary leaders, too. The dynamic Kweisi 
Mfume, president of the NAACP, who, like me, came out of the Baltimore 
City Council. The passionate Elijah Cummings, Chair of the 
Congressional Black Caucus. Clarence Mitchell who was called by many 
the 101st Senator. Parren Mitchell and Al Wynn, fighting for their 
constituents. And all the members of the NAACP, which calls Baltimore 
home.
  It is fitting that the national Great Blacks in Wax Museum and 
Justice Learning Center also calls Baltimore home. The museum and 
learning center is a popular and respected black history museum. 
Approximately 300,000 people a year from around the country and the 
world visit the museum. Many are school children, who can see 
historical figures come to life in the museum's exhibits. Expansion 
will allow the museum to teach even more visitors about the important 
contributions of Black Americans. It will also help revitalize a poor 
neighborhood in East Baltimore. There will be new jobs. There will be 
more tourists. There will be new small businesses. And most important, 
there will be new inspiration for our young people.
  The State of Maryland and City of Baltimore have already contributed 
over $5 million toward this expansion project. Private donors are 
contributing too. Now it's time for the Federal Government to do its 
part. Let's help make this museum a treasure for the entire Nation.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1233

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``National Great Black 
     Americans Commemoration Act of 2003''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) Black Americans have served honorably in Congress, in 
     senior executive branch positions, in the law, the judiciary, 
     and other fields, yet their record of service is not well 
     known by the public, is not included in school history 
     lessons, and is not adequately presented in the Nation's 
     museums.
       (2) The Great Blacks in Wax Museum, Inc. in Baltimore, 
     Maryland, a nonprofit organization, is the Nation's first wax 
     museum presenting the history of great Black Americans, 
     including those who have served in Congress, in senior 
     executive branch positions, in the law, the judiciary, and 
     other fields, as well as others who have made significant 
     contributions to benefit the Nation.
       (3) The Great Blacks in Wax Museum, Inc. plans to expand 
     its existing facilities to establish the National Great 
     Blacks in Wax

[[Page S7721]]

     Museum and Justice Learning Center, which is intended to 
     serve as a national museum and center for presentation of wax 
     figures and related interactive educational exhibits 
     portraying the history of great Black Americans.
       (4) The wax medium has long been recognized as a unique and 
     artistic means to record human history through preservation 
     of the faces and personages of people of prominence, and 
     historically, wax exhibits were used to commemorate noted 
     figures in ancient Egypt, Babylon, Greece, and Rome, in 
     medieval Europe, and in the art of the Italian renaissance.
       (5) The Great Blacks in Wax Museum, Inc. was founded in 
     1983 by Drs. Elmer and Joanne Martin, 2 Baltimore educators 
     who used their personal savings to purchase wax figures, 
     which they displayed in schools, churches, shopping malls, 
     and festivals in the mid-Atlantic region.
       (6) The goal of the Martins was to test public reaction to 
     the idea of a Black history wax museum and so positive was 
     the response over time that the museum has been heralded by 
     the public and the media as a national treasure.
       (7) The museum has been the subject of feature stories by 
     CNN, the Wall Street Journal, the Baltimore Sun, the 
     Washington Post, the New York Times, the Chicago Sun Times, 
     the Dallas Morning News, the Los Angeles Times, USA Today, 
     the Afro American Newspaper, Crisis, Essence Magazine, and 
     others.
       (8) More than 300,000 people from across the Nation visit 
     the museum annually.
       (9) The new museum will carry on the time honored artistic 
     tradition of the wax medium; in particular, it will recognize 
     the significant value of this medium to commemorate and 
     appreciate great Black Americans whose faces and personages 
     are not widely recognized.
       (10) The museum will employ the most skilled artisans in 
     the wax medium, use state-of-the-art interactive exhibition 
     technologies, and consult with museum professionals 
     throughout the Nation, and its exhibits will feature the 
     following:
       (A) Blacks who have served in the Senate and House of 
     Representatives of the United States, including those who 
     represented constituencies in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, 
     Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and 
     Virginia during the 19th century.
       (B) Blacks who have served in the judiciary, in the 
     Department of Justice, as prominent attorneys, in law 
     enforcement, and in the struggle for equal rights under the 
     law.
       (C) Black veterans of various military engagements, 
     including the Buffalo Soldiers and Tuskegee Airmen, and the 
     role of Blacks in the settlement of the western United 
     States.
       (D) Blacks who have served in senior executive branch 
     positions, including members of Presidents' Cabinets, 
     Assistant Secretaries and Deputy Secretaries of Federal 
     agencies, and Presidential advisers.
       (E) Other Blacks whose accomplishments and contributions to 
     human history during the last millennium and to the Nation 
     through more than 400 years are exemplary, including Black 
     educators, authors, scientists, inventors, athletes, clergy, 
     and civil rights leaders.
       (11) The museum plans to develop collaborative programs 
     with other museums, serve as a clearinghouse for training, 
     technical assistance, and other resources involving use of 
     the wax medium, and sponsor traveling exhibits to provide 
     enriching museum experiences for communities throughout the 
     Nation.
       (12) The museum has been recognized by the State of 
     Maryland and the city of Baltimore as a preeminent facility 
     for presenting and interpreting Black history, using the wax 
     medium in its highest artistic form.
       (13) The museum is located in the heart of an area 
     designated as an empowerment zone, and is considered to be a 
     catalyst for economic and cultural improvements in this 
     economically disadvantaged area.

     SEC. 3. ASSISTANCE FOR NATIONAL GREAT BLACKS IN WAX MUSEUM 
                   AND JUSTICE LEARNING CENTER.

       (a) Assistance for Museum.--Subject to subsection (b), the 
     Attorney General, acting through the Office of Justice 
     Programs of the Department of Justice, shall, from amounts 
     made available under subsection (c), make a grant to the 
     Great Blacks in Wax Museum, Inc. in Baltimore, Maryland, to 
     pay the Federal share of the costs of expanding and creating 
     the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum and Justice Learning 
     Center, including the cost of its design, planning, 
     furnishing, and equipping.
       (b) Grant Requirements.--
       (1) In general.--To receive a grant under subsection (a), 
     the Great Blacks in Wax Museum, Inc. shall submit to the 
     Attorney General a proposal for the use of the grant, which 
     shall include detailed plans for the design, construction, 
     furnishing, and equipping of the National Great Blacks in Wax 
     Museum and Justice Learning Center.
       (2) Federal share.--The Federal share of the costs 
     described in subsection (a) shall not exceed 25 percent.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section $15,000,000, to 
     remain available until expended.

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I am proud to join Senator Mikulski as 
cosponsor of the ``National Great Black Americans Commemoration Act of 
2003.'' This legislation will help offer a more complete portrayal of 
our Nation's proud history--one that includes an increased awareness of 
the contributions made by many great black Americans of various fields 
and accomplishments.
  This legislation seeks to recognize the contributions of African 
Americans who have served in Congress or other government capacities, 
in the military, or in other important roles as educators, authors, 
scientists, inventors, athletes, clergy and civil rights leaders. 
Clearly, there are few, if any, areas of American culture and history 
that have not been touched and improved upon by the impact of black 
individuals. As we recognize this, it is important that we also 
recognize those whose goal is to make available the history of these 
outstanding people.
  One such institution is The Great Blacks in Wax Museum, a nonprofit 
organization in Baltimore, MD, whose mission is to present the history 
of black Americans and to highlight their contributions to our nation. 
I believe that this institution's work thus far and its goals for the 
future make it worthy of our support. This legislation not only 
commends the efforts made by this museum to date, but authorizes the 
appropriation of funds that will help the museum to improve and expand. 
Appropriate Federal assistance, coupled with other funding raised by 
the museum, will allow the current institution to become the National 
Great Blacks in Wax Museum and Justice Learning Center, which will be 
better equipped to serve its purposes. This improved museum will be a 
bright example for projects with similar goals and will provide an 
excellent source of historical education for all who visit.
  I am a strong believer that our history should be presented in a 
complete and accurate manner. Where we have understated in the past, we 
should make amends. The development of the National Great Blacks in Wax 
Museum and Justice Learning Center will be a valuable statement 
recognizing the contributions of so many great African Americans. I 
hope that my colleagues will see the merit in this endeavor and will 
lend their support to the National Great Black Americans Commemoration 
Act.
                                 ______