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HONORABLE CHARLES B. RANGEL
OF NEW YORK
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
SATURDAY, AUGUST 4, 2007
A TRIBUTE TO RUBY DEE
Mr. RANGEL: Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Ruby Dee, an American actress, poet, playwright, and civil fights activist. Her career in acting has crossed all major forms of media over a span of eight decades. Ms. Dee has been active in civil rights causes and is a living legend whose grace and life has inspired many.
Born Ruby Ann Wallace on October 27, 1924, in Cleveland, Ohio, she grew up in Harlem, New York. Ms. Dee is a graduate of the famed American Negro Theatre in Harlem where she studied with Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte, often working along their side in movies. Her acting career began during a time when Blacks were fighting for civil rights. She earned national acclaim for her performance in the 1950 film, The Jackie Robinson Story. Her film credits include A Raisin In The Sun, Roots, and Do The Right Thing. She was the first African American woman to secure major roles at the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Connecticut, serving as a trailblazer for Blacks in American theater. Ms. Dee and her beloved husband, the late Ossie Davis, were honored in 1995 by President Clinton with the Presidential Medal for Lifetime Achievement in the Arts and in 2004 by the Kennedy Center for their contributions to the performing arts in America. In 2007, their album titled, ``With Ossie And Ruby: In This Life Together'' won a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album. In the fight for racial equality, she was a member of several civil rights organizations. She and her husband served as masters of ceremonies for the historic 1963 March on Washington. Along with W.E.B. Du Bois, Paul Robeson, Malcolm X, and other leaders of the civil rights movement, she has been an advocate and activist of equal rights for all Americans. Ms. Dee is a courageous woman who was far ahead of her time. She and her husband raised three children: Guy Davis, Nora Day and Hasna Muhammad. I'm grateful for her friendship, talent, and commitment to uplift and inspire African American people. Ms. Dee has touched the lives of all Americans, not to mention New Yorkers. The village of Harlem is proud to claim her as its own and America is a better place because of her life and immeasurable contributions.