“The Tallest Tree in Our Forest” |
Image: Paul Robeson, Eslanda Robeson, and Paul Robeson, Jr., New York Public Library, 1941
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Paul Robeson was an exemplary leader who dedicated his life to championing the cause of the oppressed. Robeson believed that “effective Negro leadership” rested on “a single-minded dedication to their people’s welfare… For the true leader all else must be subordinated to the interests to those whom he is leading… To live in freedom one must be prepared to die to achieve it.” Robeson embodied this dedication and fearlessness. He consistently placed his cause above himself, standing by his principles when it would have been far easier to compromise on his controversial beliefs.
I stand here struggling for the rights of my people to be full citizens in this country. And they are not. They are not in Mississippi. And they are not in Montgomery, Alabama. And they are not in Washington. They are nowhere, and that is why I am here today. You want to shut up every Negro who has the courage to stand up and fight for the rights of his people.
––Paul Robeson, Testimony Before the House Un-American Activities Committee, 1956
Robeson’s leadership was also defined by his creative combination of artistry and activism. A product of the Harlem Renaissance, he used the arts to promote dignity and to dispel the myth of black inferiority. As John Henrik Clarke remarked, “He was the forerunner of the artist who saw that his art extended beyond the stage and had to be involved with the life of the people.”
“The Great Forerunner”
Paul Robeson left an inspiring legacy. His work as “the Great Forerunner” shaped the activism of an entire generation of black athletes, intellectuals, and artists, from John Carlos and Tommie Smith to Malcolm X to Harry Belafonte. Future leaders in the fight against oppression around the world studied his model of fearless, dedicated, and creative leadership.
Paul Robeson’s enemies tried to silence him and erase his legacy from history, but Robeson’s powerful voice could never be silenced. It still resounds today. As Alexandre Verret wrote, “It will go on until the final victory of good over evil in the uphill fight for freedom. That voice will live forever so that right, justice, and equality prevail for all in the world.”
Paul Robeson’s enemies tried to silence him and erase his legacy from history, but Robeson’s powerful voice could never be silenced. It still resounds today. As Alexandre Verret wrote, “It will go on until the final victory of good over evil in the uphill fight for freedom. That voice will live forever so that right, justice, and equality prevail for all in the world.”
To be free–– to walk the good earth as equal citizens, to live without fear, to enjoy the fruits of our toil, to give our children every opportunity in life– that dream which we have held so long in our hearts is today the destiny that we hold in our hands.