Senate Resolution No. 2250

BY: Senator CLEARE

CELEBRATING the 126th Anniversary of the birth of
Paul Robeson

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to pay tribute to
citizens of the State of New York whose lifework and civic endeavor
served to enhance the quality of life in their communities and the great
State of New York; and

WHEREAS, Paul Leroy Robeson, born the son of a former slave, was
both valedictorian and a star athlete at Rutgers University, and
received his degree in law at Columbia University in 1923 while living
in Harlem; and

WHEREAS, As a young man, Paul Robeson began to advocate for the
equality of all Americans, and was recognized for his exceptional vocal
talents; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson played successfully in the National Football
League while concurrently enrolled in law school at Columbia University;
and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson was soon cast in many successful musical
productions in New York City during the height of the Harlem
Renaissance, owing to his skills as a vocal performer; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson's talent as an actor and singer soon took his
fame abroad, where he developed a sympathy for anti-fascist,
anti-racist, and anti-colonial movements worldwide; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson returned to the United States in 1940 and
developed a reputation as one of the nation's most prominent artists,
singers, and actors, and broke many records, including as the first
Black lead actor with an all-white supporting cast in the role of
Othello on Broadway that ran for 296 consecutive performances, the
longest run of a Shakespeare play in Broadway history; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson developed a reputation as an outspoken
political activist for racial justice in the United States and the end
of Jim Crow, pushing the Major Leagues to admit Black men in their
teams, meeting with President Truman to demand the enactment of
anti-lynching legislation and civil rights laws, partnering with WEB Du
Bois to launch a campaign for such legislation in 1946, advocating that
United Nations members cease their exploitation of colonial African
territories, and charging the United States with genocide at the United
Nations for failing to protect Black Americans from violence; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson continued his advocacy for justice for all
peoples in spite of political persecution by the federal
government-including blacklisting by the FBI, demands to testify before
the House Un-American Activities Committee, and revocation of his rights
to leave the country without due process-and at great risk to his
personal well-being, for example riots at a concert of his in Peekskill

in 1949 that were organized as a benefit for the Civil Rights Congress
and was disrupted by a violent white mob; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson, before hundreds of Black and Jewish trade
unionists in this same Peekskill episode demonstrated his commitment to
unionized workers of all nationalities and races, and that during World
War II, Paul Robeson was made an honorary member of the International
Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU); additionally, Paul Robeson
famously remarked in August 1941, "The future of America depends largely
upon the progressive program of the Congress of Industrial Workers
(CIO)" inspirationally shows the way forward for workers' security and
rights herein New York State, nationally, and globally; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson's status as a talented singer and actor, as
well as his pronounced and unceasing advocacy for anti-colonialism and
equality, made him one of the most famous and recognizable people in the
world; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson was born on April 9, 1898, and passed away at
the age of 77 on January 23, 1976; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson is one of the greatest heroes of the civil
rights movement, the Harlem Renaissance, and one of the greatest
Americans and New Yorkers of the twentieth century; and

WHEREAS, The legacy of Paul Robeson has long been carried on by his
granddaughter, Susan Robeson, a New York resident, who is an American
author and producer of works about her grandfather, including: "The
Whole World In His Hands: A Pictorial Biography of Paul Robeson" and
"Grandpa Stops a War: A Paul Robeson story"; and

WHEREAS, The legacy of Paul Robeson is carried on today in the State
of New York in a multitude of ways, including the work of Dr. Gregory
Robeson Smith, Grand Nephew of the late great Paul Robeson-who is a 33
degree Mason and Past Grand Master of the 10,000 members Prince Hall
Grand Lodge of the State of New York, as well as Senior Pastor at the
Mount Hope A.M.E. Zion Church in Westchester, New York; and

WHEREAS, Other individuals deserve credit for their labors of love
to ensure that Paul Robeson receives the recognition he deserves,
including Michael Haley of the Paul Robeson "Here I Stand" Committee
who, among other things, is leading a campaign to have a statue erected
in Robeson's Honor in Upper Manhattan; and

WHEREAS, Paul Robeson has been recognized and lauded all over the
world including the following accolades: member of the College Football
Hall of Fame, recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award, star on
the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a member of the American Theater Hall of
Fame, commemorated via the release of a U.S. Postal Service Stamp,
renaming of several buildings, libraries, boulevards and campuses after
him, membership in the New Jersey Hall of Fame and naming a variety of
heirloom tomato after him; and

WHEREAS, Since Paul Robeson lived in Harlem for many years and was a
resident of New York, it is incumbent upon us to recognize him through
the celebration of the 126th Anniversary of the birth of this one of a
kind renaissance man; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
celebrate the 126th Anniversary of the birth of Paul Robeson; and be it
further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to the family of Paul Robeson.