The Majestic Paul Robeson: An African Anti-Imperialist
The death of Paul Leroy Robeson on 23 January 1976 removed from the world stage not only one of its outstanding cultural figures, but one who allied his art to the cause of human freedom and liberty everywhere. Born in Princeton, New Jersey, on 9 April 1898, the son of a Presbyterian pastor and teacher and the grandson of a slave, Robeson had to struggle against racial and political discrimination all his life, but he never wavered in his dedication to the cause of his people, to the cause of human emancipation and social progress, to the cause of peace.
Possessed of talents which raised him to the heights as scholar, lawyer, sportsman, singer and actor, Robeson never succumbed to the temptations which must often have been placed in his way to “look after No. 1” and forget his people. He records in his autobiography “Here I Stand” that:
“In 1936, when I was in London, John Hamilton, then national chairman of the Republican Party, visited me with a proposition that I return to America and campaign among Negroes for Alf Landon against President Roosevelt. My reward would be that as an actor I could write my own ticket in regard to future Hollywood contracts and starring productions, since the big film magnates were staunchly Republican and hated the man in the White House. I declined the offer and today I can smile at the thought that anyone could imagine me stumping the country, urging Negroes to spurn t
