What This Bill Does
This bill creates a new National Historic Site in Illinois dedicated to Emmett Till, his mother Mamie Till-Mobley, and Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ. The site will preserve and explain the history of the Great Migration, Emmett Till's funeral service, Mamie Till-Mobley's civil rights activism, and the broader civil rights movement.
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Who It Affects
The Secretary of the Interior (the government official who oversees the Department of Interior) will directly administer this site. Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ in Chicago will work with the federal government. The general public will have access to visit and learn from this historic site.
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Key Provisions
* The site becomes a unit of the National Park System (a group of protected federal lands and historic places) once the Secretary of the Interior reaches an agreement with Roberts Temple about public access, interpretation (explaining the history), operation, and maintenance (Sec. 3(b)).
* The Secretary must publish an official announcement in the Federal Register (a government publication) within 30 days of deciding the site meets requirements (Sec. 3(b)(2)).
* The Secretary shall create a map showing the site's boundaries as soon as practical after this bill becomes law, and keep it available for the public to view at National Park Service offices (Sec. 3(d)).
* The Secretary may acquire land for the site through donation, purchase from willing sellers, or exchange (Sec. 3(e)).
* Within 3 years of receiving funding, the Secretary must prepare a general management plan following federal law, and submit it to Congress (Sec. 3(f)(3)).
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What Changes
If this becomes law, the federal government officially recognizes and creates a new historic site at Roberts Temple in Chicago. The site will receive federal protection and resources to preserve these important historical stories for future generations.
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Important Definitions
* "National Historic Site" means the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley and Roberts Temple National Historic Site that this bill establishes (Sec. 2(1)).
* "Roberts Temple" means Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ located in Chicago, Illinois (Sec. 2(2)).
* "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Interior (Sec. 2(3)).
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II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 562
To establish the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley and Roberts Temple
National Historic Site in the State of Illinois, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
FEBRUARY 28, 2023
Ms. DUCKWORTH (for herself, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. BOOKER, Mrs. HYDE-SMITH,
and Mr. WICKER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
A BILL
To establish the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley and
Roberts Temple National Historic Site in the State of
Illinois, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emmett Till and
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Mamie Till-Mobley and Roberts Temple National Historic
5
Site Act’’.
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SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
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In this Act:
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•S 562 IS
(1) NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE.—The term ‘‘Na-
1
tional Historic Site’’ means the Emmett Till and
2
Mamie Till-Mobley and Roberts Temple National
3
Historic Site established by section 3(a).
4
(2) ROBERTS
TEMPLE.—The term ‘‘Roberts
5
Temple’’ means the Roberts Temple Church of God
6
in Christ, Chicago, Illinois.
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(3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
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the Secretary of the Interior.
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SEC. 3. EMMETT TILL AND MAMIE TILL-MOBLEY AND ROB-
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ERTS TEMPLE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE.
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(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subject to subsection (b),
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there is established the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-
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Mobley and Roberts Temple National Historic Site in the
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State of Illinois as a unit of the National Park System.
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(b) CONDITIONS OF ESTABLISHMENT.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—The National Historic Site
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shall not be established until the date on which the
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Secretary determines that an agreement entered into
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between the Secretary and the Roberts Temple pro-
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viding for public access to, and interpretation, oper-
21
ation, and maintenance of, the National Historic
22
Site that is sufficient to constitute a manageable
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park unit.
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•S 562 IS
(2) NOTICE.—Not later than 30 days after the
1
date on which the Secretary makes a determination
2
under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall publish in
3
the Federal Register notice of establishment of the
4
National Historic Site.
5
(c) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the National Historic
6
Site is to preserve, protect, and interpret for the benefit
7
of present and future generations resources associated
8
with—
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(1) the Great Migration;
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(2) the memorial service and funeral of Emmett
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Till;
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(3) the story of the courage and activism of
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Mamie Till-Mobley that was demonstrated as Mamie
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Till-Mobley transformed the murder of her son into
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a powerful symbol of racial injustice; and
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(4) the civil rights movement.
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(d) MAP; BOUNDARIES.—
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(1) MAP.—As soon as practicable after the date
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of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall prepare
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a map of the National Historic Site.
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(2) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—The map prepared
22
under paragraph (1) shall be on file and available
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for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the
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National Park Service.
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•S 562 IS
(3) BOUNDARIES.—The boundaries of the Na-
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tional Historic Site shall be the boundaries generally
2
depicted on the map prepared under paragraph (1).
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(e) ACQUISITION AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may
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acquire any land or interest in land located within the
5
boundary of the National Historic Site by—
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(1) donation;
7
(2) purchase from a willing seller with donated
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or appropriated funds; or
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(3) exchange.
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(f) ADMINISTRATION.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall admin-
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ister the National Historic Site in accordance with—
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(A) this Act; and
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(B) the laws generally applicable to units
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of the National Park System.
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(2) AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary may—
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(A) enter into an agreement with the Rob-
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erts Temple for the purpose of providing public
19
access to, and interpretation, operation, and
20
maintenance of, the National Historic Site; and
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(B) enter into cooperative agreements,
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leases, or other agreements, as appropriate,
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with public and private entities to provide and
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facilitate interpretive and educational services,
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•S 562 IS
administrative support, and technical assistance
1
relating to the National Historic Site, within or
2
outside the boundaries of the National Historic
3
Site.
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(3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—
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(A) DEADLINE
FOR
COMPLETION.—Not
6
later than 3 years after the date on which funds
7
are first made available to the Secretary for the
8
preparation of a general management plan for
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the National Historic Site, the Secretary shall
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prepare a general management plan for the Na-
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tional Historic Site in accordance with section
12
100502 of title 54, United States Code.
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(B) INCLUSION.—The general manage-
14
ment plan prepared under subparagraph (A)
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shall identify, as appropriate, the roles and re-
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sponsibilities of the National Park Service and
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any applicable management entity in admin-
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istering and interpreting the National Historic
19
Site and areas affiliated with the National His-
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toric Site in a manner that does not interfere
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with existing operations and the continued use
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of existing facilities at the National Historic
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Site, unless agreed to by the Roberts Temple
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•S 562 IS
and in accordance with the agreements de-
1
scribed in paragraph (2) and subsection (b).
2
(C) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—On com-
3
pletion of the general management plan under
4
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall submit to
5
the Committee on Energy and Natural Re-
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sources of the Senate and the Committee on
7
Natural Resources of the House of Representa-
8
tives the general management plan prepared
9
under that subparagraph.
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Æ
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