CONTRIBUTED IN

FREEDOM
C

PHILOSOPHY
BACKGROUND
• Paul Robeson-Paul Leroy Robeson was born on April 9, 1898, in Princeton, New Jersey, to Anna
Louisa and William Drew Robeson, an escaped enslaved person. Robeson's mother died from a fire when
he was six and his clergyman father moved the family to Somerville, where the youngster excelled in
academics and sang in church.
CONTRIBUTION
• Paul Robeson was a famous African-American athlete, singer, actor, and advocate for the civil rights of
people around the world. He rose to prominence in a time when segregation was legal in the United
States, and Black people were being lynched by racist mobs, especially in the South.
ACHIEVEMENTS
• When he was 17, Robeson earned a scholarship to attend Rutgers University, the third African American
to do so, and became one of the institution's most decorated students. He received top honors for his
debate and oratory skills, won 15 letters in four varsity sports, was elected Phi Beta Kappa and became
his class valedictorian.
• From 1920 to 1923, Robeson attended Columbia University's Law School, teaching Latin and playing
pro football on the weekends to pay tuition. In 1921, he wed fellow Columbia student, journalist Eslanda
Goode. The two would be married for more than 40 years and have a son together in 1927, Paul Robeson
Jr.
• Robeson briefly worked as a lawyer in 1923 but left after encountering severe racism at his firm. With
the encouragement of Eslanda, who would become his manager, he turned fully to the stage.
 THANK YOU
BY:ALDRIX TUBA
GAS11-MARX