St. Paul recorder., 1963-12-26
Paul Robson Returns
To Native Land

The announcement that Paul Robeson 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 denouncdng its racial mores and announcing he
was going to Russia to i've Because he was some
thing of a social lion of part of American
power structure and we'll known, his apparent
dsaffectiou made great impact on American ma
jorfty group opinion. He was denounced as a Com
munist, Soviet stooge and in many other terms.
Out of the denouement of Robesons "deser-
ton" by white fellow citizens came the startling
fact that 1t was not completely shared by the us.
Negro population which generally admired Robson
because Of his continued attack 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 enjoyed any considerable lead
ership among them. The whites who Honized Robe
all the country without even consulting the
Negroes accepted him a leader because Of his
prominence which they themselves admired They
naturally shocked when he decanted 10 Russia
and more So when American Negroes did not Join in
the general condemnation and criticism of the
singer.
The American Negro's reaction can be summed
UP in the words of our readers at the time of
Robesons decision: when Mr.. Robson claims Sow
let Russia Is land Of freedom shake my head
and disagree when he says the United States is not
truly free and democratic and oppresses the Negro
people, I agree because he Is telling the truth"
American Negroes generally sympathzed with
Robesons bitterness against the American racial
caste system but did not admire hts advocacy Of
Stains Soviet Many Of them appreciated that Robe
son, in sense an idealst desperately and cour-
realization of its shortcomings by his rejection Of
the American system which allowed vast injustices
against his people. Although many were shocked
few learned the lesson, and years later have had
to reap the harvest Of the denial Of basc rights to
one-tenth Of our populaton-something which Rob
esons highly world publicized 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 are some who will say he Is ddsilusoned
by Communism; Is undecided which Communis>
camp to support the Russian Chinese; others are
of the opinion that he home 10 secure medical
treatment which Is not available elsewhere.
There are other suggestions that he Is coming
home 10 take part in the civil rights struggle which
fer in large sense he early made huge financial
sacrifices. If this Is he will not get much
agement from the established civil rights groups
because while many Of their leaders do not believe
that Robson has ever been card carrying Com
mu1st-they recognize his affiHation with the broad
us. civil rights movement today would be labin-
ty to just cause.
One Of the chief appeals by which the White Su-
premactsts have been guTling the white majority
group in their rear-guard action against the civil
rights movement is the patent falsehood that the
whole movement rs a Communist plot" to
throw the American republic. Robeson's partcipa-
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 ha(
Robson pick some other time to come home. How
ever as some Of US wont 10 say, rather nrealistic
ally, this Is a free country"