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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The achievements of singer, actor, athlete, and |
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activist Paul Robeson mark him as one of the most inspirational |
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Americans of the 20th century, and it is fitting to pay tribute to |
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his life and career; and |
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WHEREAS, Born in 1898 in Princeton, New Jersey, Mr. Robeson |
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was the son of William Drew Robeson, a Presbyterian minister and |
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former slave, and Maria Bustill Robeson, a schoolteacher; and |
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WHEREAS, An excellent student and athlete, Mr. Robeson was |
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only the third African American to attend Rutgers College, where he |
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made Phi Beta Kappa and graduated as valedictorian in 1919; at |
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Rutgers he also earned 15 varsity letters in sports and was the |
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first Rutgers football player ever to make All-American; and |
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WHEREAS, While supporting himself after college as a |
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professional football player, Mr. Robeson earned a law degree from |
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Columbia University in New York in 1923; his legal career was cut |
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short, however, when he encountered racial discrimination, and he |
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turned instead to the stage; and |
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WHEREAS, He joined playwright Eugene O'Neill's Provincetown |
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Players and gave a brilliant performance in O'Neill's play The |
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Emperor Jones in 1933; other stage triumphs followed in New York, |
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where he played Shakespeare's Othello and the Haitian revolutionary |
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Toussaint L'Ouverture; his performances of the song "Ol' Man River" |
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in the Broadway musical Show Boat and the 1936 film version are |
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considered definitive; and |
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WHEREAS, At the peak of his popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, |
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Mr. Robeson linked his concert and recording career with his |
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political activism and humanitarian work; his performances of |
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spirituals and work songs thrilled audiences all over the world; an |
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outspoken opponent of racism, he used his fame to campaign against |
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lynching, segregation, and other forms of racial prejudice, and he |
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refused to sing before segregated audiences; and |
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WHEREAS, In the 1950s, Mr. Robeson suffered ostracism and |
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harassment because of his political beliefs; he was blacklisted by |
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theater owners and concert managers and his concerts were disrupted |
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by mobs; his passport was revoked by the U.S. State Department in |
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1950 and not returned to him for eight years; and |
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WHEREAS, Even so, Mr. Robeson never backed down from his |
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principles, and before his death in 1976, he was recognized for his |
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artistic contributions and his activism with such awards as the |
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Donaldson Award, the American Academy of Arts and Letters medal, |
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the Badge of Veterans of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, the NAACP |
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Spingarn Medal, the Champion of African Freedom Award from the |
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National Church of Nigeria, the Duke Ellington Medal, and the Civil |
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Liberties Award; he was also awarded honorary degrees from Rutgers |
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University, Hamilton College, Morehouse College, Howard |
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University, and Humboldt University; in 1995, more than 75 years |
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after graduating from Rutgers, he was posthumously inducted into |
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the College Football Hall of Fame; and |
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WHEREAS, The artist and humanitarian Paul Robeson was a man |
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of remarkable gifts and accomplishments who devoted his life to the |
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causes of freedom, justice, and equal rights; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas |
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Legislature hereby honor the life and career of Paul Robeson. |