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1940-1942
Makes cross-country tour, appearing in regularly scheduled concerts,
except in Deep South or before segregated audiences.
1940
Active throughout year in Committee to Aid China, Joint Anti-Fascist
Refugee Committee to Aid Spanish Refugees and Council on African
Affairs.
January 1, 1940
In response to an avalanche of popular demand, gives repeat performance
of Ballad For Americans on CBS
Radio and shortly afterwards records the cantata with the American
People’s Chorus on Victor Records.
January 21, 1940
Receives honorary Doctor of
Humane Letters from Hamilton College, in Clinton, NJ.
March 8, 1940
Film Proud Valley premiers at Leicester Square Theatre, London.
June 24, 1940
Performs Ballad for Americans, with New York Philharmonic Symphony
Orchestra and the fifty voices of the first racially integrated chorus,
at Lewisohn Stadium.
July 23, 1940
Sings to 30,000 people jamming Hollywood Bowl, assisted by Los Angeles
Philharmonic Orchestra. Strikes a blow against racism when the Beverly
Wilshire is the only hotel in Los Angeles willing to accommodate him,
but at the then exorbitant rate of $100 per night and only if he will
register under an assumed name. He complies with this requirement, but
then arranges to spend a few hours every afternoon sitting in the
lobby, where he can easily be recognized. From this time forward, Los
Angeles hotels are open to African American guests.
July 28, 1940
Gives concert for 165,000 at Grant Park, in Chicago presented
by the Chicago Park District and the Chicago Federation of Musicians.
August, 1940
· Visits Camp Wo-Chi-Ca (Workers' Children's Camp), in New
Jersey, an interracial summer camp for children of workers.
Returns to the camp every summer through 1949, singing with the
children and playing baseball with them, and helping to develop an
extensive musical program. The camp was established in New Jersey in
1934 by a group of trade unionists and built entirely by volunteer
union labor.
· Sings at benefit concert for the monthly journal, Equality.
· Is called by Collier's magazine "the favorite male Negro singer" of
concertgoers and "America's No. 1 Negro entertainer."
August 3, 1940
Editorial in The Chicago Defender says, "It is easy to understand why
Paul Robeson is the most beloved and greatest of artists we have
produced. Robeson is an artist-fighter for Negro America….He sings for
freedom….He is of the people and for the people."
August 31, 1940
Sings at opening session of the Peace Congress, at Chicago Coliseum,
following a banquet given in his honor by the Emergency Peace
Mobilization.
September, 1940
Appears, with pianist Hazel Scott and novelist Richard Wright, at
benefit to establish the Negro Playwrights’ Company, before 5,000 at
Golden Gate Ballroom in Harlem.
September 1, 1940
Gives concert at American Negro Exposition in Chicago.
October 6, 1940
Sings at Carnegie Hall, New York City.
November, 1940
Gives concert at University of Washington, Seattle.
November 7, 1940
Performs at Institute of Arts and Sciences, Columbia University.
November 12, 1940
Gives concert at San Francisco Opera House. Following the concert, in
spite of his celebrity, is refused admission to Vanessi’s
Restaurant. Files suit against the owner for $22,500 under
the
California Civil Code barring discrimination in public places on the
basis of race or color, but the case never gets to court.
November
24, 1940
Performs in concert at
Auditorium Theater, Chicago, as part of the “History and Enjoyment of
Music Series.”
December, 1940
· In Detroit, makes a significant contribution to the success of the
UAW’s organizing campaign by speaking to the African American workers
from Ford plants and other industries, and advising them to join the
United Automobile Workers and the CIO, which has a policy of racial
equality and welcomes African American workers into its ranks: “I am
against separate unions for Negro and white workers. All should belong
to the same organization….The Negro problem cannot be solved by a few
of us getting to be doctors and lawyers, The best way my race can win
justice is by sticking together with progressive trade unions.” (Foner)
Over the next six years, is inseparably identified with the labor
movement in Detroit.
· Gives recital at Pennsylvania State College, one of four performances
with Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra.
· Pickets at strike of National Association of Die Casting Workers
(CIO), in Chicago.
1941
FBI Chief, J. Edgar Hoover, labeling Robeson a “subversive,” begins
collecting reports on his activities, initiating a decades-long
campaign of harassment and denigration.
January, 1941
Gives concert for 14,000 at Lewisohn Stadium, with New York
Philharmonic Orchestra.
February 11, 1941
Performs in concert for 5,100, in observance of Negro History Week, at
the University of California, Berkeley. Apologizes to the audience for
refusing to sing Glory Road , although requested by them, explaining
that its lyrics, “are offensive to my people.” Also speaks on the role
of African American artists, saying, in part, “The Negro people,
whether amateurs or professionals, have a distinct contribution to make
to the American theater. The major consideration should be that of
providing avenues for the expression of this contribution. This means
that Negroes who happen to be amateurs, but nevertheless show promise,
should receive training and assistance in the writing field and in all
other fields of play production, sets, lighting, costuming and business
management....In addition, I am opposed to all-Negro revues and plays
in conditions where they are not a necessary faithful characterization
of Negro life.”
February 23, 1941
Performs concert of Negro Sprituals, international folk songs and
Ballad for Americans, sponsored by the International Workers' Order, at
Manhattan Center, New York City.
March 7, 1941
Sings a solo version of Ballad For Americans and other songs at a
benefit for the Committee for People's Rights, commemorating the 150th
anniversary of the Bill of Rights.
March 17, 1941
Sings at the Madison Square Garden 60th birthday tribute to Communist
Party General Secretary William Z. Foster, attended by 18,000.
April, 1941
Performs in pageant, The Negro in American Life, dramatizing major
events in African American history, written by Carlton Moss, pioneering
African American filmmaker/historian, co-sponsored by the Manhattan
Council and the National Negro Congress, attended by 6,000.
April 25, 1941
Gives concert for Washington Committee for Aid to China, sponsored by
National Negro Congress, with 6,000 in attendance.
May 10, 1941
Receives first annual award from the New Jersey Organization of
Teachers of Colored Children, "For distinguished contributions to his
county as scholar, singer, actor and ambassador of good will."
May 19, 1941
Speaks and sings at United Auto Workers rally of thousands in downtown
Detroit to aid Ford organizing campaign, just days before the Union’s
successful “showdown” with Henry Ford. Also visits two Ford plants,
shaking hands at shop gates.
June 23, 1941
Sings at Lewisohn Stadium, NYC, with 14,000 in attendance.
July 8, 1941
Speaks and sings to the Third National Convention of the National
Maritime Union, held in Cleveland, where the Union confers honorary
membership on Robeson. (Foner)
July 9, 1941
Performs for 7,500, assisted by Philadelphia Orchestra.
Fall,
1941
Gives
concert for students at Glenbard High School, Glen Ellyn, Illinois.
September 29, 1941
Speaks to 20,000 at Mass Meeting to Free Earl Browder, imprisoned head
of CPUSA, at Madison Square Garden, New York. (Foner)
October 1, 1941
Records “King Joe,” a blues tune in tribute to the legendary boxer Joe
Louis, with Count Basie and his orchestra; the lyrics of the song were
written by novelist Richard Wright.
November 29, 1941
Sings at testimonial concert at Town Hall, NYC, saluting Earl Robinson,
composer of Ballad For Americans.
December 21, 1941
Gives concert for inmates at San Quentin prison.
December 16, 1941
Sings at San Francisco Civic Auditorium, with San Francisco Symphony
Orchestra.
December 22, 1941
· At “Defend America Rally” in Los Angeles, organized by National Negro
Congress, calls for full mobilization of Black community for the war
effort.
· Performs in radio broadcast, “Salute to the Champions,” in support of
American troops fighting in World War II.
1942
· Devotes time and talent to war effort, touring war plants, performing
at War Bond Rallies and recording programs for American and Allied
soldiers. Gives recitals, many at no fee, for such groups as Washington
Committee for Aid to China, Russian War Relief, Ford Workers Victory
Chorus, Labor Victory Rally at Yankee stadium, Concert for Negro
Soldiers. At all appearances, calls for end to discrimination in the
armed forces and the defense industry.
· The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) includes Robeson on
its list of “presumed” Communists.
February 20, 1942
Headline in Kansas City’s Black newspaper, The Call, reads, “Paul
Robeson Stops in Middle of Concert to Protest Municipal Auditorium Jim
Crow. Famous Baritone Blasts Segregation in Public Building.” Editor
writes to thank Robeson “for the stand you took against segregation in
the Municipal Auditorium here. I think that your protest has spurred
the Negro citizens here to wage a campaign against discrimination in
our tax-supported buildings. You have given us a good start.”
March 6, 1942
Gives concert sponsored by Ford Local 600, UAW, Detroit.
March 7, 1942
Addresses and sings to mass meeting at Bethel AME Church in Detroit on
behalf of Black families of Sojourner Truth Housing Project. Urges
fighting back against Ku Klux Klan.
March 22, 1942
Is guest of honor at dinner “In Tribute to Anti-Fascist Fighters,” held
at Hotel Biltmore, New York, chaired by Dorothy Parker, attended by
over 1,000, including many celebrities, raising $11,000 in
contributions for the transportation of anti-fascist Spanish refugees,
veterans of Republican Spain’s war against fascism, from the
concentration camps of Nazi-occupied France to Mexico, where they are
granted political asylum.
Spring, 1942
Makes trip to Deep South to attend convention of Southern Negro Youth
Congress, held in Tuskegee. From there, goes directly to the Southern
Conference for Human Welfare, at Nashville, where he shares the
platform with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
April 8, 1942
Address and sings to mass meeting in New York City to “mobilize Negro
and colonial people in the fight against Fascism.”
May, 1942
Addressing Yankee stadium meeting of 51,000; calls for second front to
shorten war.
May 11, 1942
Release of documentary film Native Land, with Robeson providing
off-screen narration and singing, dealing with 1938 findings of La
Follette-Thomas Senate Civil Liberties Committee supporting union
organizing. The premier screening, at the World Theatre, for
which Robeson donates his services, is a benefit for the New York
Newspaper Guild.
Film receives rave reviews.
May 17, 1942
· Receives citation from Secretary of Treasury Morgenthau, “In
recognition of distinguished and patriotic service to our country.”
· Appears on The Fred Allen Hour, on CBS radio.
June, 1942
Appears at Lewisohn Stadium, New York City, together with Marian
Anderson, at Interracial War Bond Rally, sponsored by the Treasury
Department.
June 22, 1942
Sings and speaks at rally for Russian War Relief, at Madison Square
Garden.
July 12, 1942
Performs Ballad For Americans, with the American People's Chorus, at
Lewisohn Stadium, NYC.
July 20, 1942
Is guest of honor at Free People’s Dinner, at Beverly Hills Hotel, Los
Angeles, sponsored by 400 civic leaders and Hollywood film stars under
the auspices of the Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee Committee and the
Council on African Affairs, to raise funds to liberate anti-fascist
leaders from Nazi concentration camps in France.
July 31, 1942
Sings at "Win the War" Rally, at Grant Park Band Shell, in Chicago,
urging the opening of a Second Front by the Allies.
August 10, 1942
Opens in his first US appearance of Othello, at Harvard University.
This also marks the first time the role is portrayed by an African
American, with a cast of white actors, on a US stage.
August
17, 1942
Performs Othello at Princeton University.
September, 1942
Bay Area CIO in San Francisco holds luncheon in Robeson’s honor.
September 2, 1942
Speaks at Free India Rally of 4,000 in Manhattan, sponsored by the
Council on African Affairs, protesting the imprisonment of Gandhi,
Nehru and other Indian independence leaders by the British colonial
authorities.
September 15, 1942
Speaks and sings for 10,000 workers at Inglewood, CA plant of North
American Aircraft, at invitation of Local 887, UAW.
September 17, 1942
Sings and speaks at mass rally, with the theme of “Win the War, Defeat
Jim Crow,” at Philharmonic Auditorium, Los Angeles, a huge
demonstration for the opening of a second front in the war against
Hitler in Europe, sponsored by the Council on African Affairs. The
event has broad support among civic leaders, religious, labor and
community organizations.
September 18, 1942
Following public release of film Tales of Manhattan, holds press
conference where he announces that he will no longer act in Hollywood
movies because of the demeaning, stereotyped roles available to Black
actors. Indeed, this turns out to be his last film. Also praises CIO
unions for being “in the forefront of the fight to smash barriers of
social discrimination in hiring.” (Foner)
September 19, 1942
Tours shipyards in San Francisco Bay Area, singing before workers on
the docks. In his speeches, praises the AFL unions for taking up the
fight against racial discrimination in job hiring and urges workers to
join the anti-fascist struggle.
September 22, 1942
· Sings and speaks at mass meeting at Municipal Auditorium, Oakland,
CA, sponsored by the Citizens for Victory Committee and the Bay Area
Council Against Discrimination, calling for a second front in the
anti-fascist war in Europe.
· “Tales
of Manhattan: An Actor Who Could Have Told Them Something About The
Script,” article in Daily People’s World, reports on Robeson’s
September 18 press conference, where he explains his views on the
controversy over the film and his efforts to change the direction to a
realistic portrayal of African Americans. When asked why he accepted
the role, he replies, “I thought it might lead to something better. I
did it to see is I could influence a Hollywood script in the right
direction after it was written. I found out that it can’t be done.”
September
24, 1942
Congressman Martin Dies, racist Texas Democrat and head of the
Un-American Activities Committee, becomes
the first person to accuse Robeson of being a Communist. His
“evidence,” in presenting the charge before Congress, is Robeson’s
participation in the film Native Land. Congressman Martin Dies, racist
Texas Democrat and head of the Un-American Activities Committee, This
white supremacist considers the film’s anti-racist message to be
“communistic” and, therefore, Robeson is “guilty,” by association.
October
1942 to April 1943
Goes on concert
tour of seventy performances in cities across the US and Canada.
October 29, 1942
Sings and speaks before interracial audience at the Booker T.
Washington School auditorium in New Orleans, praising southern Blacks
for their courage and steadfastness in the struggle against Jim Crow.
(Foner)
November, 1942
· Speaks and sings at the 6th Annual Dance of the National Maritime
Union, held in New York City, as benefit for the USO clubs and Allied
War Relief Organizations.
· Appears at mass rally, “Salute to Our Russian Ally,” in Madison
Square Garden.
· ·Sings and speaks at mass meeting of Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee
Committee, held at Hotel Astor, New York City, raising $25,000 for aid
refugees from Hitler Fascism.
November 10, 1942
Gives concert at Cornell University, New York.
November
20, 1942
Is guest artist and featured speaker at Four Freedoms Rally, at
Orchestra Hall, Chicago, sponsored by the Chicago Civil Liberties
Committee, with 2,000 in attendance.
November
21, 1942
Speaks at fundraising luncheon for the Abraham Lincoln School For
Social Science, in Chicago, attended by 200 professional, educational
and labor organizations. Scheduled to open in early 1943, this school
for adults will offer courses with an emphasis on protecting and
expanding democracy and will welcome students of all races and ethnic
backgrounds.
January, 1943
Sings to 35,000 at White Sox Park, Chicago.
January
12, 1943
FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover sends memo to Special War Policies Unit
recommending that Robeson "be considered for custodial detention in
view of the existing emergency."
February
7, 1943
Receives distinguished award from Schomburg Collection of Negro
Literature (New York Public Library), among top eighteen individuals,
organizations or institutions that had done the most to improve race
relations. Robeson is included “for symbolizing and promoting the folk
art of many lands and peoples.”
February
12, 1943
Receives annual Lincoln Award from students and faculty of Abraham
Lincoln High School, Brooklyn, NY, “in recognition of his courageous
championship of good will, tolerance and minority rights.”
February
13, 1943
Appears on radio, in the International Lincoln broadcast, sponsored by
the American Office of War Information.
April,
1943
Joins with many other notables in the arts and the sciences, as well as
government officials, civic, religious and labor leaders, to form the
National Council of American-Soviet Friendship, for the purpose of
promoting better understanding and strengthening friendly relations
between the two countries to help win the war against Fascism and
establish an enduring peace.
April
5, 1943
Concludes concert six-month tour in Mansfield, OH, with 1,300 jammed
into an auditorium to hear him perform a program of folk songs from
around the world, ending with Ballad For Americans and The Star
Spangled Banner. The audience compels him to do thirteen encores.
May 2, 1943
Sings to 54,000 at Labor For Victory Rally at Yankee Stadium and urges
the group to defeat Fascism at home as well as abroad.
May
22, 1943
In an interview in the People's Voice, NY, says, in part, "The U.S. can
best prepare for the future by breaking down the autonomy of the
states, repeal the poll tax and put anti-lynch legislation in force.
Our chief executive must act for the protection of all the people by
guaranteeing all of our nation complete equality."
June
2, 1943
Delivers commencement address and receives honorary degree of Doctor of
Humane Letters from Morehouse College, Atlanta. In presenting the
award, Morehouse President Benjamin E. Mays tells Robeson: "You sing as
if God Almighty sent you into the world to advocate the cause of the
common man in song. You are truly the people’s artist….We are happy…to
be the first Negro college in the world to place its stamp of approval
upon the leadership of a man who embodies all the hopes and aspirations
of the Negro race…."
June
7, 1943
Speaks and sings at Negro Freedom Rally at Madison Square Garden.
June
10, 1943
In commencement address at Manual Training School, advises Blacks to
support the struggle for racial equality in the trade union movement.
June
25, 1943
Gives open-air concert to 22,000 at the Watergate, in Washington DC.
June
27, 1943
Sings and
speaks over CIO’s national radio program, Labor for Victory, urging
unity in the war against Fascism.
July 1, 1943
Performs with Philharmonic Orchestra, for 20,000 at Lewisohn Stadium,
New York City
July 8, 1943
Is special guest at 8th Annual Session of the
National Maritime Union Convention in New York and is awarded honorary
membership in the Union.
July
15, 1943
Gives concert for 2,000 trainees at US Naval Training Station, in Great
Lakes, IL
July
20, 1943
Speaks at Free People’s Dinner, given in his honor, in Berkeley, CA,
declaring that the victory over Fascism “must bring a world where there
can be no question of a colored people or a white people, but a
question of human beings, a world where there can be no question of
colonial exploitation of any kind.” (Foner)
July
24, 1943
·
Sings and
speaks at “Production for Victory Rally” at Apex Smelting Company
defense plant in Chicago, sponsored by International Union of Mine,
Mill and Smelter Workers.
·
Performs
at 4th Annual American Negro Music Festival,
sponsored by The Chicago Defender newspaper, held at Comiskey's White
Sox Park, Chicago, with 35,000 attending.
July
25, 1943
Is honored guest at meeting of the Board of Directors of the Abraham
Lincoln School For Social Science, in Chicago. Donates $2,000, the fee
paid him by the Chicago Defender for his performance the previous
night. Robeson rarely makes a public gesture of giving money; he
usually does it in private or by donating his services.
August
1943
Participates in rally to benefit Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee Committee,
in Los Angeles.
August
8, 1943
Speaks and
sings in San Francisco, at Conference on Racial and National Unity in
Wartime, sponsored by the CIO.
August
10, 1943
Performs at United Nations Concert, with the San Francisco Symphony
Orchestra, sponsored by San Francisco CIO Council, at San Francisco
Civic Auditorium
August
21, 1943
Speaks to Longshore & Shipclerks’ Caucus at their convention in
San Francisco.
September-October
1943
Gives several performances of Othello in New Haven, Philadelphia and
Boston. While in Boston, is invited to City Hall, where
Mayor Maurice Tobin presents him with the key to the city, the first
time such and honor is given to an African American.
September
11, 1943
At invitation of Vice President Henry A. Wallace, addresses Win the
Peace Rally at the Chicago Stadium, with 20,000 attending.
October, 1943
Performs in all-star Victory Rally for 5,000 at Golden Gate Ballroom, New York,
organized by African American pianist and band leader Teddy Wilson.
Others who contribute their talents include Coleman Hawkins, Hazel
Scott, Pearl Primus, Billie Holliday, Mary Lou Williams, Ella
Fitzgerald.
October
19, 1943-June 30, 1944
Stars in Othello at Shubert Theatre, New York
, thus becoming the first African American to play the role with a
white supporting cast on the Broadway stage. At the history-making
opening night performance, the audience gives him a twenty-minute
standing ovation, demanding ten curtain calls.
His portrayal is considered the definitive Othello of the modern
theater. The show runs for 296 performances, setting the record for the
longest-running Shakespearean production in the history of the Broadway
theater, earning him a long list of prestigious awards, including the
coveted Donaldson Award for Best Acting Performance, as well as the
highest praise from reviewers and critics the world over. Despite such
acclaim and his international renown and popularity, he is not
permitted to dine at Sardi’s, located just across the street from the
Theatre, or at other New York restaurants, except in Harlem.
Performs with
Philharmonic Orchestra, for 20,000 at Lewisohn Stadium, New York
City.
November
12, 1943
Honorary membership conferred by International Longshoremen’s and
Warehousemen’s Union (ILWU) President Harry Bridges after unanimous
action by Convention, for “his steadfast devotion and service to the
cause of democracy and to the economic and cultural advancement of all
peoples.”
November
14, 1943
Makes special trip to Boston to address a meeting at Symphony Hall,
calling for a full investigation into the recent rash of anti-Semitic
acts of vandalism against a Jewish cemetery and a synagogue. Making the
link to the war against fascism in Europe, he says, “The struggle for
freedom in which we are bloodily engaged means to me freedom for all
individuals. To attack the Jews is to attack the colored race, and I
trust that Negroes in Boston are as outraged as though the attacks had
been on them."
November 16, 1943
Speaks at the
Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York, at 12th Annual
Herald Tribune Forum, on the participation of African Americans in the
fight against Fascism, stating that they are among the people who have
a special stake in the victory of the Allies over the Fascist powers. (Foner)
November 21, 1943
Sings and speaks at fundraiser to establish the Abraham Lincoln School
for Social Studies, at the Chicago Opera House, to benefit the
thousands of African American workers who have migrated from the South.
December 3, 1943
Speaks to annual meeting of Major League Baseball club owners,
demanding they admit Black players to major league baseball. It is
largely due to Robeson’s efforts, on this and other occasions, that
Jackie Robinson is finally able, two years later, to break the “color
bar” in baseball. (Foner)
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