[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 15532]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       REMEMBERING BARBARA RINGER

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. LAMAR SMITH

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 17, 2009

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Madam Speaker, a remarkable and pioneering lady, 
Ms. Barbara A. Ringer, the ninth Register of Copyrights, passed away 
earlier this year.
  The first woman to serve as the head of the United States Copyright 
Office, which is part of the Library of Congress, Ms. Ringer served as 
an example of the profound, positive impact that a single individual 
can have in improving the lives and circumstances of others.
  While her professional duties meant that she spent the overwhelming 
majority of her time and personal energy focused on promoting and 
protecting the rights of authors, composers, songwriters and 
performers, her passion for justice was not limited to these concerns.
  My distinguished colleague, the Chairman of the House Judiciary 
Committee, described some of Ms. Ringer's broader efforts in this 
regard in his remarks that were offered a few moments ago.
  When the Washington Post reported on Ms. Ringer's passing, the 
headline read ``Force Behind New Copyright Law''. That headline is 
telling in at least two respects.
  First, Ms. Ringer was truly the indomitable catalyst and 
indispensable person who motivated Congress to enact The Copyright Act 
of 1976, the first and only major revision of the code since the 
enactment of the 1909 Copyright Act nearly seven decades before. Ms. 
Ringer was a visionary who foresaw the impact of technological progress 
on the rights of individual creators. As the principal author of the 
1976 Act, she succeeded to a remarkable degree in promoting principles 
that both strengthened the rights of authors and provided affirmative 
protections, for the first time, to users for the ``fair use'' of 
copyrighted works.
  Second, in referring to the 1976 Act, the Post characterized a law 
that is now more than three decades old as the ``New Copyright Law.'' 
This characterization indicates how difficult it is to balance all the 
competing interests and shepherd a bill that affects so many 
individuals and entities to enactment and yet this remarkable lady did 
precisely that through the sheer power of her intellect, commitment, 
perseverance and strategic abilities.
  In closing, I ask that I be permitted to place into the Record two 
documents. The first is the Washington Post article, which I referred 
to earlier. The second is a Special Edition of Copyright Notices dated 
April 2009, which was authored by Judith Nierman and does an excellent 
job of chronicling the life and achievements of Ms. Ringer.
  For both those who knew her and those who benefit unknowingly from 
her tremendous and dedicated efforts, Ms. Ringer has left an indelible 
legacy that is worthy of public recognition.

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