Here I Stand

Paul Robson was the son of an escaped slave. He earned 15 Varsity letters in sports at Rutgers in Baseball, Basketball, Football and Track and Field, and graduated from Rutgers in 1919 as valedictorian. He then attended and graduated form Columbia Law School in 1923 and after a brief time practicing law he pursued a career in the arts as a singer and actor. If there ever was an American Renaissance man it was Paul B. Robeson. How does a man with all these talents become a communist? Here I stand sheds light on the complexity of Paul Robeson and reveals a lot about who he was especially his strong sense of social justice. He was one of the first artists who became a political activist. Yes before Bono there was Robeson. He not only gave millions of his own money he also raised funds to help the poor and causes he believed in; he supported factions against Franco in the Spanish Civil war, raised money for refugees from Hitler's regime and he lobbied President Truman to support anti-lynching Legislation. He was known for supporting socialist causes; at the time socialist causes included the eight hour work day, abolishing child labor, programs to feed and care for the poor and elderly before our country had unemployment and social security. Here I Stand his personal examination of his own philosophy and reading it makes you wonder what Black men of his generation could have achieved if they had been born after the civil rights movement. My grandfather was a communist organizer and lived in St. Louis, Missouri. My father met Robeson as a boy. Some Black people, like Robeson and my grandfather, embraced communism because it offered hope. Personally, I believe that if our country fully embraced the principles of equality written in our Constitution and accepted Black people as full citizen's communism would have held no appeal at all to men like Robeson and my grandfather. Had Robeson had the same opportunities as white men who had the same talents in his generation then I doubt communism would have held the same appeal for him. My grandfather was a WWI veteran and because of segregation he had to travel 300 miles just to enlist in the Army; if he had been treated fairly like all men who sacrificed to serve this country communism would not have appealed to him either. Paul Robeson's struggle was the struggle of the Black people of his generation who, like him, looked for hope in a philosophy that we now know with historic hindsight was not the panacea they sought; nevertheless in Here I Stand he gives them a voice. This is a fascinating look into Robeson's life and it is worth reading; we read it in college in Afro-American History and I was able to discuss this with my dad(who was patriotic and served in the Marines) and learn even more about this fascinating person who would today be labeled a multitalented genius; in the post civil rights era Robeson would also have the full rights of citizenship and have more opportunity to benefit

I was expecting to read an autobiography of Paul Robeson but in the first few pages, he clearly informs the reader that the book being read is not an autobiography. And it's not, although it deals with facets of his life. The book focuses more on exploring how Paul Robeson came to hold his strong political beliefs. As a student of African history (of the diaspora and Africa itself), the most valuable thing about this book, at this writing, is how ahead of his time Robeson was. Before learning about Africa, or learning African languages became the cultural phenonemon it is in some circles, Robeson was doing it. He wasn't doing it simply to expand his repetoire of songs or for any other self-serving reason. He was doing it because he understood that being able to communicate with people in their own language works wonders in being able to develop a genuine rapport. He also did as an extension of his understanding that the centuries long condition of slavery had deprived him of a correct perception of Africa and African people. I finished this book with an increased respect for his personality, his character, his devotion to African people and last but not least, his intelligence. Paul Robeson's life is an example to progressive artists who aim to have their art serve their people's struggle, not just be a vehicle for personal expression.

The life of Paul Robeson is a story worth telling and hearing by all. Whether of not one agrees with all of the places in which he journeyed in search of truth, we should and must recognize his strength in traveling against the mindless tides of the time and his unwillingness to merely be blown along by the strongest winds -- as so many are today. Speaking of which, I must cite the slanderous "review" of 8 January 2001 by an, of course, "anonymous" naysayer who seems forever mired in the days of McCarthy's cold war rhetoric, hatred, and mindless babbling. Please note that the cold war is over, and even when it was on, we were ill-served by the kind of dimwitted buffoonery which branded anyone who dared have an opinion of his own as an enemy of the state. Sadly, that kind of blatant fascist lunacy has come to rule America again. This is the perfect time for this story to be told.

Good book for anyone who wants to learn about this unsung american hero. When will history books teach the youth of our country about this man?

Paul Robeson was a proud man. A man of bravery, intelligence and integrity. He was a man who had to walk alone, as men must do sometimes. He formed his own opinions, defined his own ideology, and stood up for that ideology when confronted. Faced with hatred the way he was, many men would give in and surrender, Mr. Robeson refused to do this. He walked the road that Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, and Michael Jordan walked and he lived to tell it like he saw it. All the kids who live in poverty should know that education is the key to being your own person, if you need a guide, read Here I Stand.