Minneapolis spokesman., 1963-12-26
Paul Robson Returns
To Native Land

The announcement that Paul Robson, the singer
planned to return to the United States his homeland
for Christmas doubt received with mixed
emotions by the American public.
Robson shocked the nation several years ago
by denouning its racial mores and announcing he
going to Russia to live. Because he was some
thing of social lion of part Of our American
power structure, and so we'll known, his apparent
dsaffection made great impact on American ma
jority group opinion. He denounced as Com
munist, Soviet stooge and in many other terms
Out of the denouement of Robeson's "deser-
ton" by our white fellow citizens the startling
fact that it was not completely shared by the us
Negro population which generally admired Robson
because of his continued attack ON segregation and
discrimination, which had cost him thousands of dol
lars income from concert engagements.
What the American whites did not perceive was
that while Robson widely admired by his fel-
low Negroes he never enjoyed any considerable lead
ership among them. The whites who Honzed Robe
son an over the country without consulting the
Negroes accepted him as a leader because Of his
prominence which they themselves admired. They
naturally shocked when he decanted to Russia
and more So when American Negroes did not join in
the general condemnation and criticism of the
singer.
The American Negroes reaction can be summed
UP in the words of of readers at the time OF
Robeson's decision: when Mr. Robson claims Sow
let Russia Is a land Of freedom I shake my head
and disagree when he says the United States is not
truly free and democratic and oppresses the Negro
people, agree because he Is telling the truth"
American Negroes generally sympathized with
RobeSon's bitterness against the American racial
caste system but did not admire his advocacy Of
Stains Soviet Many Of them appreciated that Robe
son. in a ideaNst was desperately and cour-
and into fho
realization of its shortcomings by his rejection of
the American system which allowed vast injustices
against hds people. Although many shocked
few learned the lesson and years later have had
to reap the harvest OF the denial Of basic rights to
one-tenth Of our population-something which Rob
eSon's highly world pubcized criticism should have
alerted us.
There will be many interpretations Of the reason
for Robesons return to his native-land. Only Louis
Lomax who spoke here recently at Augsburg seemed
among Americans to have the inside information on
the noted singers plans
There some who will say he is tfsfllusioned
by Communism; Is undecided which Communis~
camp to support the Russian or Chinese others are
Of the opinion that he home to secure medical
treatment which Is not available elsewhere
There are other suggestions that he Is coming
home to take part in the civil rights struggle, which
for in large sense he early made huge financial
sacrifices. If this Is he will not get much encour
agement from the established civil rights groups
because while many Of their leaders do not believe
that Robson has ever been card carrying Com
mumst-they recognize his affihation with the broad
US civil rights movement today would be nabin-
ty to just cause.
One Of the chief appeals by which the White Su-
premactsts have been guIling the white majority
group in their rear-guard action against the civil
Io Pa1o hot
whole movement 'Is a Communist plot" to over
throw the American republic Robesons participa-
ton in the rights fight at any level presents threat
to the civil rights movement which nevertheless
must be accepted part Of political warfare inher-
ent in creating necessary social changes We imagine
that the civil rights leaders would rather have haC
Robson pick some other time to come home. How
ever some Of us wont TO say. rather unrealstic-
ally, this is free country"