III 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 62 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
JUNE 15, 2004 
Received and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of Congress that Katherine Dunham 
should be recognized for her groundbreaking achieve-
ments in dance, theater, music, and education, as well 
as for her work as an activist striving for racial equality 
throughout the world. 
Whereas Katherine Dunham was born on June 22, 1909, and 
began formal dance training in her late teens; 
Whereas, in the 1930s, Katherine Dunham revolutionized 
American dance by incorporating the roots of black dance 
and ritual, and by transforming these elements into cho-
reography accessible to all through the Katherine 
Dunham Technique;
HCON 62 RFS 
Whereas Katherine Dunham completed her bachelor’s degree 
in social anthropology at the University of Chicago, was 
a pioneer in the use of folk and ethnic choreography, and 
was one of the founders of the anthropological dance 
movement; 
Whereas Katherine Dunham utilized her dance career and 
public status to draw attention to issues of segregation 
and the civil rights movement; 
Whereas Katherine Dunham founded Les Ballet Negre in 
1931, the first black ballet company in the United States; 
Whereas Les Ballet Negre became known as the Katherine 
Dunham Dance Company, touring in more than 60 coun-
tries during the 1940s; 
Whereas Katherine Dunham was a dancer, choreographer, 
and director on Broadway, and was the first black cho-
reographer at the Metropolitan Opera; 
Whereas, in 1945, Katherine Dunham founded the Dunham 
School of Dance and Theatre in Manhattan, thereby pro-
viding a centralized location for students to immerse 
themselves in dance technique while also studying topics 
in the humanities, languages, ethics, philosophy, and 
drama; 
Whereas, in 1967, Katherine Dunham established the Per-
forming Arts Training Center in East St. Louis, Mis-
souri, which enrolled high-risk youth into its programs in 
fine, performing, and cultural arts; 
Whereas Katherine Dunham founded the Katherine Dunham 
Centers for Arts and Humanities in 1969, and the Kath-
erine Dunham Museum and Children’s Workshop in 
1977;
HCON 62 RFS 
Whereas Katherine Dunham went on a 47-day hunger strike 
in 1993 to call attention to the welfare of Haitians, 
thereby shifting public opinion concerning the United 
States’ relations with Haiti, and helping to precipitate 
the return of Haiti’s first democratically elected presi-
dent; 
Whereas Katherine Dunham has received 10 honorary doctor-
ates and numerous awards, including the Presidential 
Medal of Arts, the French Legion of Honor, the 
NAACP’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Kennedy 
Center Honor’s Award; and 
Whereas Katherine Dunham continues to be an activist, 
teacher, and mentor to young people throughout the 
world: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that Kath-
erine Dunham should be recognized for her work as a 
teacher, dancer, choreographer, and actress, for her dedi-
cation to improving the opportunities in the arts that are 
available to the Nation’s youth, and for her lifelong com-
mitment to humanitarian causes around the world. 
Passed the House of Representatives June 14, 2004. 
Attest: 
JEFF TRANDAHL, 
Clerk.