[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 138 (Monday, September 30, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1832-E1833]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




A TRIBUTE BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO AFRICAN-AMERICAN ACTRESSES

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                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Saturday, September 28, 1996

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today I ask the House to join me in tribute 
to seven great African-American actresses who have taken their bows in 
many places. They deserve to take their bows in this chamber as well. 
These black actresses were pioneers who broke daunting barriers. They 
were able to do so only because their talents were so formidable that 
they were able to climb the high and stoney walls of racism. Had their 
skin been white, they would have climb even higher.
  In paying tribute to these black actresses, I give special honor to 
Cicely Tyson who brought me this suggestion and who, in my judgment, is 
the greatest living American actress.


                              cicely tyson

  Cicely Tyson, an Emmy Award winner, is universally revered. As a 
child growing up in Harlem, Ms. Tyson always knew that there was a life 
for her beyond her own African-American community. How right she was. 
She was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in the movie 
``Sounder,'' and received the Vernon Rice Award for her role in the 
off-Broadway production of ``The Blacks.'' This star of every medium 
within her craft continues to amaze us by the breadth and depth of the 
roles she can play with consummate skill and talent. She is one of a 
kind.


                           butterfly mc queen

  Butterfly McQueen never got to show the breadth of her talent because 
only stereotyped roles were available to her in her day. She is best 
known for her role as Prissy in ``Gone With the Wind.'' Far less well 
known is her return to college at an age when many people are retiring. 
In 1975, I had the honor of speaking at her graduation from the City 
College of New York, when at the age of 64, she earned her degree in 
political science. This unusual accomplishment in her later years is a 
mark of the complex and multiple talents of Butterfly McQueen.
  ``I didn't mind being funny, but I didn't like being stupid,'' she 
once said. Stupid she was not. Butterfly McQueen was a wonderful 
actress and a life-long activist. She put her foot down, refusing to 
play more roles demeaning to blacks, even though that eventually ended 
her career. It did not end our memory of her talent or the great 
affection Americans will continue to have for her.


                           dorothy dandridge

  While Butterfly McQueen was famous for her comic roles, Dorothy 
Dandridge was known for her roles as a leading lady in a period when 
African-Americans were not supposed to lead anything. Yet Ms. Dandridge 
was described as one of the five most beautiful women in the world. Her 
talent and smooth style helped break many barriers for blacks. She was 
the first black to sing in the world-famous Empire Room in New York 
City and the first black to be nominated for an Oscar. The nomination 
was for her role as Best Actress co-starring role with Harry Belafonte 
in ``Carmen Jones.'' She heated up the screen in this all-black 
production and adaptation of the opera ``Carmen.'' ``Porgy and Bess'' 
is another role that made her famous and demonstrated her sensual 
style. Dorothy Dandridge will be remembered for the formidable 
combination of her beauty and talent.


                               lena horne

  Lena Horne was a contemporary of Dorothy Dandridge, but 
discrimination in Hollywood kept Ms. Horne from playing roles her 
talent merited and that critics said she was born to play. Many of her 
scenes were cut from movies before audiences ever saw them. However, no 
one will forget her performance of ``Stormy Weather'' in the 1943 movie 
by the same title. It became her theme song. Lena Horne continues to 
bring down the house whenever she appears. In the end, instead of a 
leading lady, she has become a legend.


                             rosaland cash

  Despite her refusal to play stereotypical black roles, Rosaland Cash 
was an actress who had an extraordinary career on stage, television and 
the screen. Calling herself ``a one-lady movement,'' Ms. Cash spoke out 
against the color consciousness and bias of the entertainment industry. 
She starred in ``Melinda,'' ``The New Centurians,'' and Lonnie Elder's 
``Ceremonies in Dark Old Men.'' Ms. Cash often played strong, out-
spoken women. One of the most popular actresses of the 1970's, the 
magazine, ``The Guardian,'' said she typified the '70's slogan ``Black 
is Beautiful.'' Rosaland Cash was above all an artist of enormous 
powers.


                              roxie roker

  A contemporary of Ms. Cash, Roxie Roker broke another color barrier 
when she played the wife in television's first interracial marriage on 
``The Jeffersons.'' An alumna of Howard University, Ms. Roker's big 
break came with her role in ``The Blacks.'' She also co-hosted ``Inside 
Bedford Stuyvesant'' the first television show to come out of the black 
community.

[[Page E1833]]

She will be remembered as a superb comic actress.


                             madge sinclair

  Madge Sinclair showed how irrelevant color can be when she provided 
the voice for Queen Sarabi, the mate of King Mufasa, in the much 
heralded animated film ``The Lion King.'' Ms. Sinclair was the 
recipient of five Emmy nominations and won an Emmy in 1991.
  These African-American actresses were among the pioneers who broke 
through barriers for today's stars. Years after Butterfly McQueen's 
debut in ``Gone With the Wind,'' it remains a daunting challenge for 
African-American actresses to find roles today. We honor them here 
today as great American artists just as they have honored and graced 
their craft as well as our country. We hope that paying tribute to them 
we will encourage the American entertainment industry to live up to its 
potential for artistry and fairness by welcoming a greater number of 
black actresses to reach their potential.

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