[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 101 (Thursday, July 27, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8379-S8380]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. OBAMA (for himself and Mr. Durbin):
  S. 3757. A bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 950 Missouri Avenue in East St. Louis, Illinois, as 
the ``Katherine Dunham Post Office Building''; to the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

[[Page S8380]]

  Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, today, I am introducing legislation, along 
with Senator Durbin, to honor the lifetime achievements and legacy of 
one of Illinois' most treasured figures, Katherine Dunham, who passed 
away on May 21, 2006. Our bill would name the post office on Missouri 
Avenue in East St. Louis, the ``Katherine Dunham Post Office 
Building.''
  Katherine Dunham was born in Glen Ellyn, IL, on June 22, 1909, to 
Albert Millard Dunham and Fanny June Taylor. Her father was a 
descendant of slaves from Madagascar and West Africa, and her mother 
was French Canadian. Her diverse background would foreshadow her 
lifelong commitment to exploring and teaching the history of culture 
around the world.
  Katherine Dunham's trailblazing life began at an early age when she 
entered the University of Chicago as one of the first African Americans 
to attend the school. She eventually earned bachelor, master's and 
doctoral degrees in anthropology, and participated in the Rosenwald 
Fellowship. Under this program she completed work on Caribbean and 
Brazilian dance anthropology, the first time significant work was done 
in the field. In 1931, Dunham opened her first dance school, which 
would become one of the most successful dance programs in American and 
European theater, and eventually led to her lead role in musicals, 
operas, and cabarets throughout the world.
  Dunham first appeared in London in June 1948 with her company in 
``Caribbean Rhapsody'' as part of the first tour to bring black dance 
as an art form, and American modern dance to the European public. After 
her return to the U.S., Dunham continued to dance, choreograph and 
direct on Broadway with her production, ``Katharine Dunham and Her 
Company and Bamboche.''
  When ``Aida'' premiered in 1963, Dunham became the first African 
American to choreograph for the Metropolitan Opera, further 
establishing her stature in the dance community. Beginning in 1940, 
Dunham also appeared in several films, including, ``Carnival of 
Rhythm'', ``Cabin in the Sky'', ``Star Spangled Rhythm'', ``Stormy 
Weather'', and ``Casbah''. Dunham also produced the choreography for 
``Pardon My Sarong''.
  What's more, Katherine Dunham's legacy doesn't stop on the dance 
stage. She used her notoriety to focus the public's attention to social 
injustices around the world. At the age of 82, Ms. Dunham undertook a 
47-day hunger strike in 1993, which helped shift public awareness to 
the international relationship between America and Haiti, ultimately 
assisting in the return of Haiti's first democratically elected 
President.
  In 1967, Dunham moved to East St. Louis, where she helped open a 
performing arts training center and established a dance anthropology 
program at the innercity branch of southern Illinois University that 
was eventually named the Katherine Dunham Centers for the Arts and 
Humanities.
  Katherine Dunham was a woman far ahead of her time and her 
contributions earned her the recognition and admiration of her peers. 
Among her many honors are the Presidential Medal of Arts, Kennedy 
Center Honors, French Legion of Honor, Southern Cross of Brazil, Grand 
Cross of Haiti, NAACP Lifetime Achievement Award, Lincoln Academy 
Laureate, and the Urban League's Lifetime Achievement Award. Dunham was 
one of 75 women whose lives were celebrated in the book, ``I Have A 
Dream''.
  At one of the major highlights of her career, Dunham received the 
Albert Schweitzer Music Award ``for a life's work dedicated to music 
and devoted to humanity,'' in front of a packed house at New York's 
Carnegie Hall.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the life and legacy of 
Katherine Dunham and her efforts to bring the cultures of the world to 
the community of East St. Louis, by naming the post office on Missouri 
Avenue in East St. Louis, the ``Katherine Dunham Post Office 
Building.''
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, post offices are often designated in honor 
of individuals who have made valuable contributions to their Nation. 
Today, I am pleased to honor Ms. Katherine Dunham, the world-renowned 
dancer, choreographer, teacher, and social activist, by cosponsoring 
legislation that designates the U.S. Post Office at 950 Missouri Avenue 
in East St. Louis, IL, as the ``Katherine Dunham Post Office 
Building.''
  Born in Chicago and raised in Joliet, IL, Ms. Dunham began dancing 
while in high school. She became one of the first African Americans to 
attend the University of Chicago and later earned her bachelor's and 
master's degrees in anthropology. In 1938, Dunham was hired as dance 
director for Chicago's Federal Theatre Project, where her fiery style 
would mark her work for several decades.
  In the spring of 1938, Ms. Dunham formed her own company, the Dunham 
Dance Company, and began to explore the connection of Caribbean dance 
to its African roots. In 1940, the company traveled to New York and 
performed a program titled ``Tropics and Le Jazz Hot.'' New York Times 
critic John Martin said: ``Her performance may very well become a 
historic occasion.'' Dunham's company undertook a national tour and 
performed on Broadway and in Hollywood. In 1945, Dunham opened the 
Katherine Dunham School of Arts and Research in New York. That same 
year, the company toured Europe with a program called ``Caribbean 
Rhapsody,'' which was already a success in the United States. It was 
the first time Europe had seen Black dance as an art form and also the 
first time that special elements of American modern dance appeared 
outside America. In 1963, Dunham secured her place in artistic history 
by becoming the first black choreographer at the Metropolitan Opera, 
where she helped stage the new production of ``Aida.''
  Dunham shut down her dance company in 1965 to become adviser to the 
cultural ministry of Senegal. She attended the first World Festival of 
Negro Arts in Senegal as an official representative from the United 
States.
  In 1967, Dunham opened the Performing Arts Training Center, an 
African-American cultural center for local youngsters, in East St. 
Louis, IL. She later expanded the program to include senior citizens.
  Except for a brief appearance in 1965, Dunham did not perform 
regularly after 1962 as she focused on her choreography. One of her 
major works was choreographing and directing Scott Joplin's opera 
``Treemonisha'' in 1972.
  In February 1992, at the age of 82, Dunham again became the subject 
of international attention when she began a 47-day fast at her East St. 
Louis home. Because of her age, her involvement with Haiti, and the 
respect accorded her as an activist and artist, Dunham became the 
center of a movement that coalesced to protest the United States' 
deportations of Haitian boat-refugees fleeing to the United States 
after the military overthrow of Haiti's democratically-elected 
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. She agreed to end her fast only after 
Aristide visited her and personally requested her to stop.
  Ms. Dunham is the recipient of many coveted awards, including the 
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Dance Pioneer Award, the National 
Medal of Arts, Kennedy Center Honors, the French Legion of Honor, the 
Southern Cross of Brazil, the Grand Cross of Haiti, the NAACP Lifetime 
Achievement Award, the Lincoln Academy Laureate, the Urban League's 
Lifetime Achievement Award, and numerous honorary degrees. She was also 
one of 75 women whose lives were celebrated in the book, ``I Have a 
Dream''.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Ms. Dunham's humanitarian, 
artistic, and intellectual contributions to the world of dance. She 
revolutionized American dance and used her fame to bring public 
attention to social injustices at home and abroad. It is appropriate to 
express our appreciation to Katherine Dunham for her service to the 
East St. Louis community and to the world by naming an East St. Louis 
post office in her honor.
                                 ______