[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 75 (Tuesday, May 18, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H3498-H3500]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING THE LIFE OF LENA HORNE

  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to 
the resolution (H. Res. 1362) celebrating the life and achievements of 
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne and honoring her for her triumphs against 
racial discrimination and her steadfast commitment to the civil rights 
of all people.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 1362

       Whereas Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was a trail-blazing 
     performing artist whose life exemplified her commitment to 
     social justice, peace, and civil rights;
       Whereas Ms. Horne was born in Brooklyn, New York on June 
     30, 1917, and joined the chorus of the famed Cotton Club in 
     Harlem at the age of 16 and debuted on Broadway one year 
     later in the musical ``Dance With Your Gods'' (1934);
       Whereas during the 1940s, Ms. Horne was one of the first 
     African American women to perform with a white band ensemble, 
     the first black performer to play the Copacabana nightclub, 
     and among the first African Americans to sign a long-term 
     Hollywood film studio contract, garnering her roles in a host 
     of films, including ``Thousands Cheer'' (1943), ``Broadway 
     Rhythm'' (1944), ``Two Girls and a Sailor'' (1944), 
     ``Ziegfeld Follies'' (1946);
       Whereas her rendition of the title song to the 1943 film 
     ``Stormy Weather'' became a major hit and among her signature 
     pieces, which also included ``Deed I Do'', ``As Long As I 
     Live'', and Cole Porter's ``Just One of Those Things'';
       Whereas Ms. Horne recorded prolifically into the 1990s and 
     the record ``Lena Horne at the Waldorf-Astoria'' became the 
     best-selling album by a female singer in RCA Victor's 
     history;
       Whereas Ms. Horne earned four Grammy Awards during the 
     course of her career, including the Recording Academy's 
     Lifetime Achievement Award in 1989, a National Association 
     for the Advancement of Colored People Image Award in 1999, 
     and a Kennedy Center Honor in 1984;
       Whereas Ms. Horne appeared extensively on television, 
     including specials with Harry Belafonte, Tony Bennett, 
     numerous musical reviews and variety shows, and appearances 
     on programs like ``Sesame Street'' and ``The Cosby Show'';
       Whereas she was nominated for her first Tony Award in 1957 
     for her role in the musical ``Jamaica'', and her 1981 one-
     woman Broadway show, ``Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'', 
     earned her a Tony Award, a Grammy Award, and ran for more 
     than 300 performances;
       Whereas despite Ms. Horne's pioneering contract with MGM 
     studios, she was never featured in a leading role during the 
     1940s and 50s because her films had to be reedited for 
     theaters in Southern States that proscribed films with black 
     performers;
       Whereas Ms. Horne was outspoken in her fight for racial 
     equality;
       Whereas during World War II, she used her own money to 
     travel and entertain the troops;
       Whereas while Ms. Horne performed at Army camps for the 
     U.S.O., she became an outspoken critic of the treatment of 
     African American servicemen and refused to sing before 
     segregated audiences and at venues in which German Prisoners 
     of War were seated in front of black soldiers;
       Whereas during the late 1940s, Ms. Horne sued a number of 
     restaurants and theaters for racial discrimination;
       Whereas Ms. Horne was only two years old when her 
     grandmother, suffragette, and civil rights activist Cora 
     Calhoun enrolled her as a member of the National Association 
     for the Advancement of Colored People, and she worked for 
     years with the Delta Sigma Theta sorority and the Urban 
     League;
       Whereas she participated in numerous civil rights rallies 
     and demonstrations--marching with Medgar Evers in 
     Mississippi, performing at rallies throughout the Nation for 
     the National Council of Negro Women, and taking part in the 
     March on Washington in August 1963 at which the Rev. Martin 
     Luther King, Jr., delivered his ``I Have a Dream'' speech;
       Whereas her commitment to civil rights and political views 
     may have resulted in her appearance on Hollywood 
     ``blacklists'' during the 1950s;
       Whereas Ms. Horne worked with Eleanor Roosevelt to pass 
     antilynching legislation;
       Whereas with her wide musical range and consummate 
     professionalism, she rose beyond Hollywood's stereotypical 
     portrayals of African American as maids, butlers, and African 
     natives; and
       Whereas her poise, grace, and courage paved the way for 
     generations of women and African Americans: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives celebrates the 
     life and achievements of Lena Mary Calhoun Horne and honors 
     her for her triumphs against racial discrimination and her 
     steadfast commitment to the civil rights of all people.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Conyers) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Rooney) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan.


                             General Leave

  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members have 5 legislative 
days to revise and extend their remarks.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Michigan?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. CONYERS. I yield myself as much time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, Lena Horne has now left us, but she has been known 
around the world as an outstanding actress, singer, and civil rights 
advocate. And this resolution honors her pioneering success, her 
unwavering commitment to advancing the civil rights and human rights of 
all people.
  She went on to break numerous racial barriers as a beautiful, 
talented, gifted artist, and there are very few people who don't 
remember her. She received four Grammy awards, a Tony award, the 
highest honor--the National Association for the Advancement of Colored 
People's Image award, in 1984 the Kennedy Center Honor, and she was a 
star at MGM studios. She used her own resources to travel during World 
War II to entertain troops. She did refuse at that time to sing before 
any segregated audiences.
  She marched with Medgar Evers in Mississippi, and she was honored to 
know and work with Eleanor Roosevelt.
  What a legend, what a life, and what a great contribution to this 
country she made.
  Mr. Speaker, on May 9, the actress and civil rights advocate Lena 
Mary Calhoun Horne passed away at the age of 92. Today the House 
considers a resolution to honor her pioneering success and her 
unwavering commitment to advancing the civil rights of all people.
  Born in Brooklyn in 1917, Ms. Horne began her prolific career at 
Harlem's famed Cotton Club at the age of 16 as a chorus-singer, and 
debuted on Broadway just a year later in the 1934 musical Dance With 
Your Gods.
  She would go on to break numerous racial barriers in the 1940s 
American entertainment industry--including being the first African 
American woman to perform with a white band

[[Page H3499]]

ensemble, and among the first to sign a long-term Hollywood film studio 
contract.
  Ms. Horne's films gained her national and international acclaim--her 
performance of the title song to the 1943 film Stormy Weather is still 
the standard rendition.
  Ms. Horne won numerous accolades during her career, among them:
  Four Grammy Awards, including the Recording Academy's Lifetime 
Achievement Award in 1989;
  A Tony Award for her one-woman show, Lena Horne: The Lady and Her 
Music;
  A National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) 
Image Award in 1999; and
  A Kennedy Center Honor in 1984.
  But her success did not come without trial--Ms. Horne, like a 
generation of African American performers, had to overcome the 
entertainment industry's entrenched race-based discrimination.
  Despite her groundbreaking contract with MGM studios, Ms. Horne was 
never featured in a leading role during the 1940s and 50s because her 
films had to be re-edited for theaters in the segregated southern 
States.
  Her outspoken political views may also have landed her on Hollywood 
``blacklists'' in the 1950s, further hindering her film and recording 
career.
  Ms. Horne used her own money to travel during World War II to 
entertain the troops, and while she performed at Army camps with the 
U.S.O., she became an outspoken critic of how the military treated its 
black servicemen.
  She refused to sing before segregated audiences, or groups in which 
German prisoners of war were seated in front of black American 
soldiers.
  During the 1940s, she sued a number of restaurants and theaters for 
racial discrimination, and she participated in numerous civil rights 
rallies and demonstrations.
  She marched with Medgar Evers in Mississippi, performed at rallies 
throughout the country for the National Council of Negro Women, and 
took part in the March on Washington in August 1963 at which the Rev. 
Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered his ``I Have a Dream'' speech.
  She also worked with Eleanor Roosevelt to pass anti-lynching 
legislation.
  Her courageous commitment to civil rights perhaps began as a toddler, 
when her grandmother--the suffragette and civil rights advocate Cora 
Calhoun--enrolled her as an NAACP member at the age of 2.
  Actively recording and speaking into her 80s, she will forever be 
remembered as a consummate professional and trailblazer.
  She helped to usher in the end of Hollywood's derogatory portrayals 
of African Americans as servants and African natives, and she did so 
with unwavering poise and grace.
  She led the way for generations of women and African Americans, and I 
urge my colleagues to support this important resolution to recognize 
her achievements.
  I reserve my time.
  Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I support House Resolution 1362 commemorating the life 
of Lena Horne who died earlier this month on Sunday, May 9, 2010.
  Ms. Horne's many performances as a singer, dancer, and actress 
enriched countless lives and influenced the history of jazz, pop, 
Broadway musicals, films, and television. She also contributed in 
significant ways to the civil rights movement, as Mr. Conyers just 
stated.
  Ms. Horne was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1917. Her father left 
the family when she was 3 and her mother was a traveling actress. At 
the age of 5, she was sent to live in Georgia with her grandparents. 
After returning to New York, she joined the chorus at the famed Cotton 
Club in Harlem in 1933. In the late 1930s and the early 1940s, she was 
primarily a nightclub performer, but she also appeared in a few low-
budget movies and was the featured vocalist on NBC's popular jazz 
series ``The Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street.''
  During a nightclub performance in Hollywood in 1943, she gained the 
attention of some local talent scouts for the movies. She became the 
first black performer to sign a long-term contract with a major 
Hollywood studio. She performed in a number of movie musicals 
throughout the 1940s, including the MGM musical ``Cabin in the Sky.''
  From the late 1950s through the 1960s, Ms. Horne appeared on many 
television variety shows, including ``The Ed Sullivan Show'' and ``The 
Dean Martin Show.'' In the 1970s and 1980s, she continued to perform in 
television shows, including appearances on ``The Muppet Show,'' 
``Sesame Street,'' and ``The Cosby Show.''
  In 1981, she received a special Tony award for a one-woman Broadway 
show, ``Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music,'' which ran for more than 
300 performances on Broadway. She also received two Grammy awards for 
the cast recording of her show.
  Ms. Horne again won Grammy awards in 1989 honoring her lifetime 
achievement, and in 1995, when she was almost 80, for best jazz vocal 
performance.
  Throughout her illustrious career, Ms. Horne found time and energy to 
devote to the civil rights movement. In 1963, she spoke and performed 
on behalf of the NAACP and the National Council of Negro Women at the 
famous March on Washington.
  I support this resolution's commemoration of Lena Horne's many 
contributions to music, television, theater, and civil rights. She 
brought grace and graciousness to every aspect of her work, and I urge 
my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to Danny Davis, our dear friend 
from Chicago, Illinois, as much time as he may consume.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to thank 
Chairman Conyers for yielding time, and I also want to thank him for 
his historical memories of the life of Lena Horne. Some people were 
fortunate to read about her, but I believe that Chairman Conyers is old 
enough to remember her during her heyday. As a matter of fact, I am 
also. And I never shall forget my sister and I having the opportunity 
to go and watch ``Cabin in the Sky'' when we were little kids. As a 
matter of fact, Chris and I talked about that experience with each 
other all the way up until the time that she died a few years ago. I 
mean, for us, that was the most memorable thing that we had ever seen, 
that we had ever done, that we had ever been able to do.
  We didn't know much about civil rights at that time. As a matter of 
fact, I guess we were a little young to know much about civil rights. 
But we did know that we just revered this lady, Lena Horne. And then 
later on as we got older, we were able to appreciate her in different 
kinds of roles as not only an entertainer, not only a great performer, 
but also one who had a tremendous amount of spirit in relationship to 
what it is that she taught. She taught that you really didn't have to 
take certain kinds of roles if you didn't want them and if you didn't 
see yourself that way; that it didn't matter what anybody called you; 
that what really mattered was what you answered to.
  And so Lena Horne, who was ageless, priceless--we never knew what her 
age was because we could never tell. When she was 60, I guess she might 
have looked like she was 30, maybe 25. So somehow or another, she found 
the fountain of youth. But she contributed greatly to the development 
of this country and to the world in which we live.
  So again, I want to thank Chairman Conyers for introducing this 
resolution, along with Representative Clarke and other cosponsors.
  Mr. ROONEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. CLARKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 1362, 
Celebrating the Life and Achievements of Lena Mary Calhoun Horne.
  I want to first thank my friend, mentor, and co-author, Chairman John 
Conyers, Jr. working with me to craft this resolution and for bringing 
it to the floor for a vote.
  I am here today to pay tribute to one of Brooklyn's most treasured 
gifts to American arts, culture, and civil society. On May 9, 2010, 
Hollywood actress, jazz singer, and civil rights activist Lena Horne 
passed away at the age of 92.
  Ms. Horne was a trail-blazing performing artist whose life 
exemplified her commitment to social justice, peace, and civil rights. 
Born and raised in Brooklyn, Ms. Horne made her debut performance in 
the famous Cotton Club in Harlem at the age of 16, propelling her into 
a thriving career that took her from Broadway to Hollywood.
  A major contributor to the arts, Ms. Horne's legacy as a Broadway 
star, movie star, and Grammy-award winning recording artist will never 
be forgotten. Her long career was punctuated by a number of notable 
firsts and industry accolades. She was the first African-American woman 
to perform with a white band ensemble, the first black performer to 
play the Copacabana nightclub, and among the first African Americans to 
sign a long-term Hollywood

[[Page H3500]]

film studio contract. Industry recognized her talents with four Grammy 
Awards, the Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award, a Tony Award, 
and a Kennedy Center Honor.
  A member of the NAACP since the age of two, Ms. Horne was an avid 
supporter of the civil rights movement. She participated in numerous 
civil rights rallies and demonstrations, including the March on 
Washington in August 1963. Joining Eleanor Roosevelt, Ms. Horne worked 
to pass anti-lynching legislation.
  A major supporter of the troops, during World War II, Ms. Horne 
initially toured with the USO performers. After criticizing the 
treatment of African-American troops, Ms. Horne refused to perform for 
a segregated military audience. When her studio pulled Horne off the 
tour as a response to her act of defiance, she ultimately used her own 
money to finance trips to perform at Army camps. I admire her 
dedication to honoring our troops.
  Ms. Horne left behind a legacy that has forever changed the 
opportunities available for female African-American performers. But 
even more important, Ms. Horne is a role model for young women of every 
race who are brave enough to follow their dreams or speak out against 
injustice.
  One of Brooklyn's finest, Lena Horne will be truly missed, but her 
legacy will forever remain in our memory, like a sweet . . . sweet . . 
. melody.
  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, we have no further requests for speakers. I 
know that there will be many Members that will be inserting their own 
statements in the Record.
  I yield back the balance of my time as well.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 1362.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

                          ____________________