WHEREAS, pursuant to 2 U.S.C. §2131, each state is permitted to provide and furnish to the United States Capitol two statues, in marble or bronze, of deceased persons who have been prominent citizens of the state for placement in the National Statuary Hall Collection; and

WHEREAS, currently, Virginia is represented in the National Statuary Hall Collection by George Washington and one vacant position; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to 2 U.S.C. §2132, a state may request that the Joint Committee of Congress on the Library approve the replacement of any statue the state has provided for display in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to Chapters 1098 and 1099 of the Acts of Assembly of 2020, the Commission for Historical Statues in the United States Capitol was established to recommend to the General Assembly a replacement statue and to provide for the selection of a sculptor and the submission of the Commonwealth's request to the Joint Committee of Congress on the Library for approval to replace the Robert E. Lee statue in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol; and

WHEREAS, on July 24, 2020, the Commission for Historical Statues in the United States Capitol unanimously approved a motion to recommend that the Robert E. Lee statue be removed from the Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol; and

WHEREAS, on July 31, 2020, the Honorable Governor Ralph S. Northam sent an official letter to the Architect of the Capitol requesting approval to immediately remove the Robert E. Lee statue from the National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol, and on December 21, 2020, the statue was removed; and

WHEREAS, on December 16, 2020, the Commission for Historical Statues in the United States Capitol recommended that a statue of Barbara Rose Johns should represent the Commonwealth of Virginia in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the Joint Committee of Congress on the Library be requested to fill the Commonwealth's vacant spot in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol with a statue to commemorate Barbara Rose Johns. The authorization of the Commonwealth, subject to written approval by the Governor, is in accordance with the recommendation by the Commission for Historical Statues in the United States Capitol.

The subject of the replacement, Barbara Rose Johns of Prince Edward County, was a civil rights hero and organizer of the strike that ignited public school desegregation in the Commonwealth and the United States.

The Commonwealth will select a sculptor, coordinate design of the statue with the Architect of the Capitol, and submit the statue commemorating Barbara Rose Johns for acceptance into and placement in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the United States Capitol as soon as possible.