"My work is never finished," says actress, Civil Rights icon Ruby Dee, 87

3/8/2011

Actress and civil rights activist Ruby Dee, 87, smiles when she talks about the time she slapped Denzel Washington across the face in the 2007 film; American Gangster. She spoke to an audience exceeding 250 people at Chao Auditorium Tuesday.

In the film American Gangster, Dee portrays Mama Lucas, the disapproving mother of gangster Frank Lucas, played by Denzel Washington. She was nominated for an Oscar for her role in the film which was directed by Ridley Scott.

"Ridley Scott took me aside and said 'we just gotta spank the boy'," she said. "We didn't rehearse the scene because we wanted to be as candid and real as possible."

Dee says it was easy playing the role of a concerned mother in Harlem because she grew up in the neighborhood and her own mother was preoccupied with Dee's safety. She describes Harlem as a testing ground and says it was a university of hard-knocks where she first became enthusiastic about art and acting.

"All of our lives we're learning and parenting is an art, so you can't avoid being an artist," she said" Making someone feel bad is an easy task, but making someone feel good is an art."

As an activist, Dee befriended Civil Rights activists Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X and she remains active in the NAACP and is a member of Congress of Racial Equality. Ambassador Shabazz, the daughter of Malcolm X, was in the audience.

"When I think of the hell that was racism in the 60's, I think of what we have come through and how much work we have left to do." Dee said, briefly losing her composure.

A member of the audience handed Dee a handkerchief and some members of the audience became teary eyed as the 87 year old actress continued to deliver her speech.

"Everybody in this world has got to make change," she said. "We've got to get together as a community, change that lock on the door and then change that door."

She recalled the lynchings that occurred in the Southern United States when she was younger and talked about life during that time.

"I realize the younger people in this audience might not realize what African Americans have been through," Dee said. "But when I look at the hell that was racism, I have hope for where we are going and my work is never finished."