[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 127 (Tuesday, July 29, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1580]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF DR. BARBARA ANN TEER

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 29, 2008

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the life 
and legacy of one of my district's most important leaders, Dr. Barbara 
Ann Teer, who left this world on July 21, 2008.
   Dr. Teer was born on June 18, 1937 in East St. Louis, Illinois to a 
family of teachers and leaders dedicated to community development. 
After graduating from the University of Illinois with a degree in 
dance, she moved to New York City to pursue a career as a dancer, 
actress, and director. As a performer in New York City, she found work 
in such shows as 1961's Where's Daddy? and 1966's Kwamina.
   Dissatisfied with the options available to her as a black performer 
in a predominately hegemonic artistic field, she founded the National 
Black Theatre, NBT, so that African Americans could meet, share and 
discuss their creative ideas. She immersed herself in what became a 
forty year venture that would change the cultural landscape of the 
performing arts world.
   As a cultural visionary she believed in the fundamentals of self-
love and spirituality. In 1983, her commitment to and vision of free 
expression led her to expand the NBT and to purchase a 64,000 square 
foot building on 125th Street and Fifth Avenue. The new building not 
only allowed her to house one of the largest New Sacred Yoruba Arts 
Collection in the Western Hemisphere, but through the artwork she was 
able to continue the objective of the NBT to provide a place of 
inspiration and self-expression through spirituality.
   With the National Black Theatre, Dr. Teer created an exceptional 
institution that to this day continues to inspire cultural appreciation 
and transformation, social change, freedom of expression, historic 
relevance, self-empowerment, and futuristic innovation.
   Dr. Teer dedicated her life to creating a platform that would allow 
people to experiment through trial and error so that they could achieve 
a spiritual aura that would allow them to fully express themselves 
through the performing arts. Through all her tremendous efforts and 
achievements, Dr. Teer has been duly honored, receiving countless 
awards and numerous Honorary Doctorate Degrees.
   Although Dr. Barabara Ann Teer has passed, her life's work will 
continue to affect those who are searching for a way to break free from 
a world that sometimes limits their ability to express their minds and 
souls. Dr. Barabara Ann Teer was a visionary, a cultural icon. She will 
be greatly missed, but not forgotten.

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