Sound Politics: Paul Robeson Award

March 15, 2005

Paul Robeson Award

King County's homepage is highlighting the February 3rd presentation of the Paul Robeson Awards for outstanding scholar-athletes. Many pictures of smiling award recipients are featured. Given that Mr. Robeson died in 1976, most of the young recipients will not have heard of him. Here is the synopsis biography from the FAQ:

Q: Who is Paul Robeson?

A: Paul Robeson is one of the most talented African-American scholar-athletes of the 20th Century. He devoted his life to activism, the arts, sports and high academic achievement. Through hard work and perseverance, Robeson overcame every obstacle placed in front of him. In return, the Paul Robeson Awards Program was created to uphold and celebrate today's youth–who possess the same fervor and determination to excel academically, while displaying great sportsmanship, as Paul Robeson exemplified. More information about Paul Robeson and the awards program is available online.

A much more detailed biography, including a year-by-year chronology of Robeson's life, is made available on this page.

Both biographies are sanitized. They make no mention of a guiding principle of Robeson's life: his commitment to communism. For example of his commitment: "To You Beloved Comrade," an ode to Joseph Stalin on the dictator's death. More details can be found at Wikipedia.

Robeson was very talented, and his acting and singing performances were a source of enjoyment to millions. But certainly King County can find a better role model for scholar-athletes than an apologist for butchers. At least they could be honest about the past of the man whose name is on the award.

Posted by Andy MacDonald at March 15, 2005 04:03 PM | Email This

Comments

1. I am so glad that you are bringing this up. Last year I was sent an application to nominate my son for the Robeson Award. Knowing who Robeson was, I was shocked. Robeson's is well know for betraying his friends in the Yiddish Theatre in 1950's Russia. Yiddish poet Itzik Feffer told Robeson that Stalin was knocking them all off, one by one. He begged robeson to tell the West abut their dire situation, as only Western media exposure could save their lives. He went back to the US and told the media that all was well for the Jews in Stalinist Russia, Feffer and many, many others were murdered by Stalin soon after.

Posted by: Michael B. on March 15, 2005 04:19 PM

2. Wikepedia Notes: "In 1948 Paul Robeson was on one of his periodic visits to the Soviet Union when he asked to meet with Yiddish poet Itzik Feffer. Feffer, along with the actor Solomon Mikhoels and other prominent Jews were victims of the latest anti-Semitic purge by Stalin. They had been hosted by Robeson during a World War II visit to the U.S. as part of Stalin's Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee and Robeson had been urged to intervene on their behalf. Though he had been cleaned up and dressed in a suit, Feffer's fingernails had been torn out.

Though he couldn't speak openly, Robeson later told his son that the poet indicated by gestures and a few handwritten words that Mikhoels had been murdered on the orders of Stalin and that the other Jewish prisoners were being prepared for the same fate. After the two friends said goodbye, Feffer was taken back to the Lubyanka and would never be seen alive again.

However, when Robeson returned home he condemned as anti-Soviet propaganda reports that Pfeffer and other Jews had been killed. Not once did Robeson denounce Pfeffer's murder. Later on Robeson confided in his son Paul Robeson Jr. the details of his meeting with Feffer. He made his son vow not to make the story public until well after his death, "because he had promised himself that he would never publicly criticize the USSR."

Posted by: Lee Niren on March 15, 2005 04:26 PM

3. The US Postal service issues a postage stamp in honor of Robeson in 2004. To see the stamp go to this URL: http://shop.usps.com/cgi-bin/vsbv/postal_store_non_ssl/display_products/productDetail.jsp?OID=4848903

People's Weekly World celebrates the unveiling of the stamp at this URL: http://www.pww.org/article/articleview/5011/1/209/

Posted by: Robert Barokas on March 15, 2005 04:30 PM

4. Off Topic.......[One less Democrat!!] SEATTLE — The parents of a 23-year-old activist killed while trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home is suing Caterpillar Inc., the company that made the bulldozer that ran over her. The federal lawsuit, which lawyers said would be filed here Tuesday, alleges that Caterpillar violated international and state law by providing specially designed bulldozers to Israeli Defense Forces that it knew would be used to demolish homes and endanger people.

Posted by: JCH on March 15, 2005 04:46 PM

5. Should the parents also suing the International House Of Pancakes for all the "flat as a pancake" jokes?

Posted by: JCH on March 15, 2005 04:50 PM

6. The point is that our county choose this guy because they believe what he believed. They continue to use his name because he represents what they believe.

Posted by: DeadManVoting (aka Iguana) on March 15, 2005 04:56 PM

7. When I lived in Europe (1962-1967), there were rumors that Robeson was being kept a virtual prisoner in the Soviet Union. The idea was that he had become disillusioned with the 'glorious Soviet Union.' I guess they finally let him out when he got really sick. Talk about sanitized.

Speaking of the "activist killed while trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home is suing Caterpillar Inc.," -- I've written an email to Caterpillar urging them not to give in to the blackmail lawsuit clearly intended as a fundraiser for the Left.

As I've posted earlier here, I've NEVER seen any news of when or where she was actually buried, hence I wonder whether the entire 'crushing' incident was cooked up as a publicity stunt? Can anyone find a link to info about her actual burial? And, didn't her parents, also Leftists, seem to be amazingly unfazed by her alleged death? Unfazed enough to go around the country giving speeches about her right after the incident? Didn't the pictures of her 'crushing' get busted on some blog?

I'm just asking.

Posted by: Mac on March 15, 2005 05:15 PM

8. DeadMan wins the prize. 100% Ditto!!!

Posted by: dkpcowboy on March 15, 2005 06:24 PM

9. I hope the Corries get countersured by Caterpiller & lose their house. Damn terrorist sympathising commies. They should be suing the socialist brainwash camp aka The Evergreem State College instead. They are the ones that are creating cop killers & terrorist useful idiots like their deceased daughter. It is Evergreeen, which should be reformed or cut from tax payer subsidization altogether, that is the reason their daughter is now dead.

Posted by: Kingdome on March 15, 2005 07:19 PM

10. I know things like the truth don't matter here, but I will remind you that Evergreen is consistantly ranked the best college in this state, and often the best in the Northwest. It was also the philosophical and artistic center for most pop culture of the late 80s-early 90s. Not bad for a 30 year old school.

And, maybe you were so shallow, but did it ever occur to you (especially considering the assinine behavior of her parents) that she chose Evergreen because of who she was, not became who she was because of Evergreen.

You should be proud that despite how much portions of the right want to embrace the no-nothing end of the party that this state has maintained a very good higher education system.

She died for a foolish cause, but give her credit that she had such deep beliefs. At least show some respect, as you so much demand for yourself.

As for Robeson, I assume you are aghast that their are postage stamps of Henry Ford and Charles Lindberg, or are you in favor of Hitler-lovers, and only have problems with Stalin-lovers. Or is it possible that some people do some thing very well, and deserve to be honored even if they made some stupid choices?

Posted by: JDB on March 15, 2005 09:26 PM

11. Wow. Where is the accompanying award named after a guy who espoused nazism? It's about as appropriate. But then, who cares if communism's evils have killed millions? Why, they're probably actually having a good time back their in North Korea. I'm sure of it.

Posted by: Michele on March 15, 2005 11:15 PM

12. Oh, and thank you for the truth on this. I'd never have known!

Posted by: Michele on March 15, 2005 11:15 PM

13. their=there

Posted by: Michele on March 15, 2005 11:17 PM

14. JDB, don't try and apologize for communism. It's evil. Period. Just look at Cuba. I heard ol Castro is one rich dude. He rakes it in off the state-owned businesses. Of course, no one else is allowed to own businesses to try and create some wealth for themselves. Gee, communism is so great.....

Posted by: Michele on March 15, 2005 11:21 PM

15. Where did I appoligise for communism? You could have picked a better example though. Cuba under Castro is not great, but it is better than it was under Baptista, and the Cuban standard of living is better than many other Caribean nations. Doesn't excuse it for having a despot as a leader, but despot are like that, look at what Pinochet did when we deposed the democraticaly elected government in Chile. You should have gone with North Korea, then you would have had a point.

Or did you mean by defending one of the better colleges in the US, or Washington State higher ed in general I was excusing communism..., in which case, you really cheaping the memory of those who actually suffered at the hands of communism.

If you want irony, try the Ford Motor Company being the sole sponsor of the first showing of Schindler's List. Must have sent ol' Henry spinning in his grave.

Posted by: JDB on March 16, 2005 12:28 AM

16. why does everybody assume R. Corrie is dead?

I've asked this question many times and no one responds: please send a link to a reference or other verification about the date, time and location of her burial place.

Many posters here are ace researchers. Surely it can't be so hard for them to find this info and assuage my intense curiosity about this issue?

Posted by: Mac on March 16, 2005 01:07 PM

17. JDB, there you go, telling us why Cuba 'isn't so bad.',so to speak. You need to ask yourself why Castro's own daughter says that the dream of every Cuban under the age of 70 is to LEAVE Cuba. All that 'free' health care and the poor conditions he forces them to live under must not mean much to them, eh? Have you seen the cars they drive? THey look about 30 yrs old.

No matter how excellent you claim it is, it doesn't change the fact that Evergreen is a state-sponsored hotbed of radical leftism; everyone knows it.

Posted by: Michele on March 17, 2005 11:59 PM

18. I am glad you agree that Evergreen is excellent. I won't argue that it is left of center. Of course, on this board, every school in this state is left of center. But the right in this country do not know what true leftism is. Go and hang out in Europe for a year.

People in Hati are desperate to leave Hati. People in the Domican Republic are despreate to leave the Republic. Hell, Mexicans are desperate to leave Mexico.

The cars are older than that, most are from before the revolution, or 1959. But that is because we won't sell them any more.

I am not defending Cuba, I am just saying that compared to how the people were pre-Castro, and to their neighbors, they have done all right. Remove the US embargo, and they would probably be doing just fine. Then again, Castro would have probably been overthrown without the US giving him a boogie man. Pinochet and many of the other dictators we have supported in Latin America have been far worse. Doesn't excuse Castro, but he is hardly proof of the errors of communism.

Now, North Korea, there is a communist dictator that has sucked everything good out of his people. Romania another good example.

Posted by: JDB on March 18, 2005 12:55 AM