November 13, 2021
The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the United States Mint held a ceremony to unveil the designs of the Negro Leagues commemorative coins that will be minted in 2022. After a concerted bipartisan effort, The Negro Leagues Commemorative Coin Act, a bill introduced by United States Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO), was signed into law in 2020. The bipartisan bill directed the Department of Treasury to mint three separate coins of varying denominations to commemorate the centennial of the establishment of the Negro Leagues, which was founded in Kansas City in 1920.
“I am proud to have passed the Negro Leagues Commemorative Coin Act with my colleagues to honor the legends of the Negro Leagues and help raise funds for the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum,” said Congressman Cleaver. “This is a significant effort in preserving and honoring the rich history of the Negro Leagues. Not only will this honor the legends of the Negro Leagues, but it also ensures that the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum will continue to be a pillar of the community so that future generations can learn about the players, the history of the Negro Leagues, and their significance to the civil rights movement in America.
The coin comes at no cost to taxpayers, and the U.S. Treasury will be reimbursed for the costs of issuing the coins. After the U.S. Treasury has recouped all of its costs for designing and minting the coins, additional funds raised will be distributed to the National Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, which was founded in 1990 in Kansas City.
Emanuel Cleaver, II is the U.S. Representative for Missouri’s Fifth Congressional District, which includes Kansas City, Independence, Lee’s Summit, Raytown, Grandview, Sugar Creek, Blue Springs, Grain Valley, Oak Grove, North Kansas City, Gladstone, Claycomo, and all of Ray, Lafayette, and Saline Counties. He is a member of the exclusive House Financial Services Committee; Chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Security, International Development, and Monetary Policy; member of the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress; member of the Committee on Homeland Security; and a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus.
