One of the most prominent figures to cross the Iron Curtain and forge connections between East and West was the formidable African American singer, actor, athlete, lawyer and civil rights activist Paul Robeson. Robeson visited and performed in the Soviet Union several times, where he was welcomed as a hero. He spoke with George Bernard Shaw and H.G. Wells about politics, with Jomo Kenyatta and Jawaharlal Nehru about decolonization, with Nikita Khrushchev about communism and with Albert Einstein about world peace. He was also subpoenaed by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and he denied the renewal of his passport. I will speak about his inspiring and turbulent live with Allison Blakely, Emeritus Professor of European and Comparative History at Boston University. Blakely, who joined Martin Luther King Jr at an international youth conference in 1959, specializes in the Black Diaspora in Russia and Europe.
Wednesday, February 24, 12 p.m. PST: Allison Blakely – Anti-Racist Space: Paul Robeson Between East and West
RSVP link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/9216125680431/WN_mwYFyp04QemPGvn_9Pk2vA
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