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Columbus Communicator JULY 28, 2022
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Serving Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, & Dayton SENATE CONFIRMS MARINES’ FIRST BLACK FOUR-STAR GENERAL
Lt. Gen. Michael Langley faces a confirmation hearing before the Senate
Armed Services Committee. By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia
Thursday, July 28, could mark a historic day for the
U.S. Marines. For the first time in its
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MID OHIO FOOD COLLECTIVE GETS $1 MILLION The money is part of emergency funding to the collective to help meet the “urgent and overwhelming needs of families facing food insecurity.”
GROVE CITY — Just imagine distributing more than 77.5 million pounds of food. The Mid Ohio Food Collective did just that, last year, giving to more than 168,000 families in 20 counties. This year, that number is going up. “Oh yeah,” Malik Perkins said. “Everything is significantly up this year.” Perkins, who is the public relations manager, says from January to May of this year 95,000 families have been served. “During
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JULY 28, 2022
OHIO ABORTION LAW COULD CAUSE ‘ALARMING’ MATERNAL HEALTH OUTCOMES
COLUMBUS – Doctors are fearful that more soonto-be mothers in Ohio could die in the post-Roe era. The state’s maternal mortality rate is 18% higher than the national average, with 23.8 deaths per 100,000 births, according to federal data released by America’s Health Rankings. Physicians, however, caution that Ohio’s near-total abortion ban could cause the state’s “alarming” maternal health outcomes to worsen. Hours after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, Ohio enacted its sixweek abortion ban, commonly called the heartbeat bill – a move that Amy Burkett, district chair of the American Chapter of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said will endanger women. “You take a mom … who’s maybe medically ill and has a baby that got an anomaly. Baby’s not gonna survive, but we’re
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the height of the pandemic you had a lot of families who ended up becoming food insecure, some of them were right on the line and it was already being projected that it was gonna
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246-year history, the Marines could have a Black four-star general. Lt. Gen. Michael Langley faces a confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee. If confirmed, he would lead all U.S. military forces in Africa as chief of U.S. Africa Command. Officials have stated that the Shreveport, Louisiana native has earned his stripes at each level. A graduate of the Uni-
putting her body at risk for a pregnancy that’s not gonna end with a happy outcome,” Burkett said. “So we’re forcing women to put their lives at risk.” More than 700 Ohioans died of complications related to a pregnancy from 2008 to 2019, according to the Ohio Department of Health. Of the 731 maternal deaths, 31% were deemed pregnancy-related, with the top three causes being cardiovascular and coronary conditions, infection, and hemorrhage. The majority of deaths, 60%, were considered pregnancy-associated, with unintentional injury, homicide, and mental health conditions as the main causes. “The longer we make people wait to have abortions, the more we make them continue pregnancies, make it hard to get out of state, make it hard to do those things, the more likely you are to have maternal morbidity and mortality,” Burkett said.
The risk of maternal death is even higher among Blacks, who are two to three times more likely to die after pregnancy than white women, according to Dr. Kamilah Dixon, an OBGYN at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. “Pregnancy, while it’s really exciting, it is not a benign condition,” Dixon said. “People have been getting pregnant for eons. Unfortunately, people have been dying from pregnancy for eons. We’re getting better at preventing those deaths, but they still happen.” In a letter urging the Supreme Court to uphold Roe v. Wade, the American Public Health Association and nearly 600 public health scholars argued that 14 states with the most restrictive abortion policies, including Ohio, have the worst maternal and infant health outcomes. Two abortion restrictions in place in Ohio – requiring licensed physicians to perform the procedure and
prohibiting the use of Medicaid funds to pay for abortion – were “particularly prominent” contributors to higher maternal mortality rates, according to a September 2021 American Public Health Association report. States with a licensed physician requirement, as opposed to allowing nurse practitioners or physician assistants to perform an abortion, had a 51% higher maternal mortality rate, as the number of abortion providers was severely reduced, the APHA found. States that ban the use of Medicaid funds for abortion had a 35% higher maternal mortality rate relative to states that cover the procedure under Medicaid. Of the pregnancy-related deaths in Ohio, 59% were preventable, according to Dixon, who also serves as the medical director of Wexner Medical Center’s pregnancy program Moms2B. Access to the right
health care is one of the largest drivers in preventing pregnancy, Dixon said. She commended Ohio for boosting access by recently expanding its Medicaid coverage of postpartum care from 60 days to 12 months. Dixon said protecting the health of pregnant women extends outside the doctor’s office. “We know that it goes beyond the relationship you have in the exam room, right, and then after delivery, all the other components are important,” she said. “Do you have healthy food to eat? Do you have a safe place to stay? Do you have somewhere to exercise? Do you have access to mental health support?” Burkett applauded statewide programs designed to improve maternal and infant health, like the Ohio Council to Advance Maternal Health and the home-visitation program Help Me Grow. But she said those programs can only go so far when Ohio’s six-week abortion ban deprives those with severe complications from receiving immediate, life-saving care. “Abortion happened preRoe, and abortion will happen post-Dobbs,” Burkett said. “The question is, ‘How safe is it and what is it going to do to our maternal morbidity and mortality?’”
take them a few years to recover,” Perkins said. “In the middle of that recovery, now we’re seeing record inflation, record gas prices, record cost for rent.” I nflation and higher costs
lead more people to ask for help. “Recently, we had a record day where we served more than one thousand families at this site, alone,” he said. “In one day, yes.”
Monday, Columbus City Council offering that hand of help by approving $1 million in emergency funding to the collective to help meet the urgent and overwhelming needs of families
facing food insecurity. “Roughly every dollar we receive can purchase more than four dollars in groceries,” Perkins said. “So, that dollar goes a very long way.”
versity of Texas at Arlington and commissioned in 1985, Lt. Gen. Langley commanded at every level from platoon to the regiment – including Battery K, 5thBattalion, and 11th Marines in support of Operations WILDFIRE in the Western United States. He also helmed battalion and regimental commands in 12th Marines forward deployed in Okinawa, Japan; and the 201st Regional Corps Advisory
Command-Central and Regional Support Command – Southwest in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan. As a General Officer, his command assignments included Deputy Commanding General, II Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) and Commanding General, 2d Marine Expeditionary Brigade; Commander, Marine Forces Europe, and Africa; and Deputy Commanding General, Fleet Ma-
rine Force, Atlantic, and Deputy Commander, Marine Forces Command and Marine Forces Northern Command. Lt. Gen. Langley has served more than 35 years in the U.S. Marines and assumed command of the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa a year ago. According to his militaryissued biography, Lt. Gen. Langley’s formal military education includes U.S. Ma-
rine Corps Amphibious Warfare School and College of Naval Command and Staff. He holds multiple advanced degrees, including a Master’s in National Security Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College.
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July 28, 2022
City Council Approves $1 Million to Assist the Mid-Ohio Beatty Advances $10+ Million for Central Ohio Projects Food Collective in Addressing the Historic Need for Food Community Action to
Last night, Columbus City Council approved $1,000,000 in emergency funding to Mid-Ohio Food Collective (MOFC) to help meet the urgent and overwhelming needs of Columbus families facing food insecurity. MOFC will use the funds to help replenish critically low food supplies so that more shelf-stable food can be distributed to agency partners that put food on people’s tables across our community. The need for food assistance in Central Ohio is at unprecedented levels as families struggle to make ends meet in the face of the highest inflation rates in over 40 years. Households are facing impossible choices while dealing with the high costs of groceries, energy, and rent as well as other necessary expenses like child care and health care. Consequently, service levels in Columbus and Franklin County have increased dramatically in recent months, setting new records that far surpass those set during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Mid-Ohio Food Collective is one of our City and Central Ohio’s most effective
nonprofit partners,” said Council President Hardin. Shannon “Quality food and housing are the two most basic needs that we work together to provide for families struggling to make ends meet.” At the same time, MOFC itself is battling supply chain and inflationary issues that make it difficult to acquire enough food to meet the record levels of need. Available product from federal government sources is down dramatically, forcing MOFC to purchase more food while the cost for most products has increased substantially. “The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disastrous impact on families in Columbus. Two years later we continue to battle with COVID variants, a housing crisis and an economic downturn. The cost of food has soared leaving families to struggle to pay for their next meal. This is unacceptable,” says Councilmember Shayla Favor, Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee. “We must do all that we can to make sure every family in Columbus and Central Ohio have access to safe and healthy food. I thank everyone at the Mid-Ohio Food Collective for their work and leadership in completing that mission.” In response to these
challenges, MOFC has also committed to spending $1 million of its general operating funds for the immediate purchase of additional groceries. This action, paired with the city’s timely investment of $1,000,000, will help MOFC to meet the increased needs of customers across its 20-county service area during these challenging times. “The City of Columbus is a critical partner of Mid-Ohio Food Collective. Their leadership and support is helping to supply wholesome food to individuals, families, and seniors throughout Columbus,” said Matt Habash, President & CEO of Mid-Ohio Food Collective. “While we are very grateful for this support, we will need additional help to ensure that we can continue to feed our hungry neighbors.” About Mid-Ohio Food Collective Mid-Ohio Food Collective is the umbrella organization that holds five assets: MidOhio Foodbank, its anchor asset, MidOhio Farm, Mid-Ohio Markets, Mid-Ohio Farmacy, and Mid-Ohio Kitchen. Mid-Ohio Food Collective has a network of 680 partner agencies across 20 counties to connect those in need to nutritious food. Learn more by visiting mofc.org.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass H.R. 8294, a package of six government funding bills which included funding for eight projects in Ohio’s Third Congressional District. Secured by U.S. Congresswoman and Congressional Black Caucus Chair Joyce Beatty (OH-03), the language directs $10,485,000 in federal spending to impactful community projects across Central Ohio. “I was proud to vote with my Congressional colleagues to pass a robust government funding package which includes over $10 million for vital projects across Ohio's 3rd Congressional District,” said Beatty. “From youth services to transit hubs to student safety, this money will be seen and felt across Franklin County and make our region a better, safer place for us all.” Specifically, the leg-
islation directs: $750,000 to Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Ohio to renovate the J. Ashburn Jr. Boys & Girls Club to serve youth in the community. $500,000 to Central Ohio Community Land Trust to restore the historic Edna Building. $3,000,000 to Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) to support the construction of a m u l t i - s e r v i c e mobility/transit center in the Rickenbacker area. $1,000,000 to Directions for Youth & Families for the Crittenton Community Center, which will provide services to more families, children, and adults who reside in a social service desert. $2,000,000 to Franklin County Engineer to improve safety for children walking to school, improve mobility, and connect Linden residents to the bus rapid transit line on the Ferris Road Corridor. $650,000 to IMPACT
facilitate the procurement of necessary solar and practical educational equipment, planning, and design services to renovate space for the Columbus Region Solar Lab $1,585,000 to City of Reynoldsburg to improve pedestrian safety, and enhance the streetscape on the East Main Street hisarea of toric Reynoldsburg. $1,000,000 to Zora’s House to serve Ohio women as a center for innovation, empowerment, and economic recovery. Also included in the funding bill was Beatty-authored legislation to expedite the production of the next generation of twentydollar bills featuring abolitionist Harriet Tubman. Seven additional funding requests submitted by Beatty have been approved by the House Appropriations Committee and await floor votes as part of separate government funding bills. Fiscal Year 2023 is the second time in over a decade that Community Funding Projects have authorized individual Members of Congress to direct federal spending to specific projects within their district. In Fiscal Year 2022, Beatty secured over $5 million for Central Ohio Projects.
BROWN, WHITEHOUSE, COLLEAGUES PRESS IRS ON TAX RETURN BACKLOG
Senators Seek Answers on Status of Backlog Preventing Millions From Receiving Refunds WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), members of the Senate Finance Committee, led Senate colleagues in sending a letter to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Charles Rettig requesting information about the tax return backlog. The letter also expressed concern about the broader effect budget constraints are having on taxpayers. “We write to express our concern
about the unprocessed tax return backlog, ongoing customer service challenges, and the effect of Internal Revenue Service budget constraints on the agency’s ability to serve taxpayers,” the lawmakers wrote. “While the vast majority of taxpayers, who were able to file electronically, received the refunds they were owed, delayed refunds can pose a significant hardship for the millions caught in the backlog.” In addition to Brown and Whitehouse, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Robert
Menendez (D-NJ) signed the letter. Last month, the National Taxpayer Advocate, an independent organization within the IRS, reported that 21.3 million tax returns remain unprocessed, 7 percent more than at the same time last year. In their letter, the senators noted that budgetary cuts and staff shortages – exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which temporarily shuttered IRS operations – led to agency-wide delays that have hit millions of Americans and small businesses. Since 2010, GOP-led budget cuts shrunk the agency’s funding by 20 percent
even as the number of individual tax filers grew by 19 percent. Congress also charged the IRS with getting new COVID-19 relief programs working and available, which further strained the battered agency. Brown and his colleagues recognized agency-wide efforts to speed up IRS operations and requested written answers on how the agency will improve taxpayer services. Additionally, the Senators inquired how the IRS could use additional funds to avoid similar delays in the future.
Education Department Releases Proposed Regulations Page 4
Education Department Releases Proposed Regulations to Protect Veterans and Service Members, Increase College Oversight, and Increase College Access for Incarcerated Individuals The U.S. Department of Education (Department) released proposed regulations that would implement critical changes in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 that better protect veterans and service members from being subject to aggressive targeting practices by requiring private for-profit institutions to obtain at least 10 percent of revenue from non-federal sources. This is a change from current practice, in which institutions can count federal aid for veterans and service members to meet the 10 percent revenue test. The proposed rules would also strengthen the requirements for institutions undergoing changes in ownership, including with respect to for-profit institutions seeking to convert to nonprofit status. These ownership conversions have been flagged by the U.S. Government Accountability Office as a source of concerning institutional behavior. Finally, the proposed rules would clarify how incarcerated individuals can begin to access Pell Grants for qualifying prison education programs operated by public and nonprofit institutions. “Predatory, deceptive practices that target veterans and servicemembers have no place in higher education, period,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “The Biden-Harris Administration believes educating our veterans and service members should be about honoring their contributions to our country, not exploiting them for financial gain. These proposed regulations enact welcome changes by Congress to better protect students who have served, and continue to serve, our nation. These rules will also ensure that efforts by for-profit colleges to convert to nonprofit status are genuine changes, not mere ploys to evade accountability to students and taxpayers.” This regulatory package is the latest step in the Biden-Harris Administration’s continued commitment to ensure that institutions are
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held accountable and that all students have access to a valuable postsecondary education. The proposed regulations, which were negotiated by two committees of stakeholders last year, reflect significant input from the community, and consensus agreements among negotiators. “These proposed regulations are a milestone in the Biden-Harris Administration’s ambitious regulatory agenda, both with respect to accountability and oversight of colleges, particularly for-profit colleges,” said James Kvaal, Under Secretary of Education. “Today, we take the next step toward addressing some of the most significant and pervasive problems in higher education, including unscrupulous recruiting of veterans and abuses of the change of ownership process. We are committed to finalizing these regulations expeditiously and turning to the work yet to come.” "Prison education programs bring hope to incarcerated students and their families and help prepare people for meaningful jobs and careers when they return home to our communities," said Amy Loyd, Assistant Secretary for the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education. "These proposed regulations will help to provide critical opportunities to students in prison and support the institutions working to serve them." The proposed regulations will be officially published in the Federal Register in the coming days, and the public is invited to provide comment for 30 days after the official publication through Regulations.gov. The Department expects to finalize the rules later this year so they take effect no later than July 1, 2023. The rules would make considerable improvements in the U.S. higher education system, including: Strengthening the “90/10” rule for for-profit colleges. For-profit institutions have long been required by the Higher Education Act to obtain at least 10 percent of their revenue from sources other than federal student aid provided by the Department (e.g., Pell Grants and federal student loans). The American Rescue Plan Act that President Biden signed into law requires that at least 10 percent of funds come from sources other than any federal education assistance—not just aid awarded by the Department. The proposed regulations would be a change from current practice, in which institutions can count fed-
eral aid for veterans and service members to meet the 10 percent revenue test. Prior to the proposed change, a loophole led some institutions to aggressively target these populations because every $1 brought in from these students mean they could receive $9 more in Department of Education aid without needing to secure any private investment. These proposed regulations, on which negotiators reached consensus, would codify this statutory change and ensure for-profit institutions are not overly reliant on taxpayer-financed aid. The proposed changes would also strengthen the 90/10 calculation by ensuring institutions cannot evade the metric, including by counting revenue from the sale of institutional loans, income-share agreements, or similar alternative financing options. Clarifying procedures for institutions undergoing changes in ownership, including those converting from for-profit to nonprofit status. A growing number of institutions now undergo often-complex changes in ownership transactions, leading the U.S. Government Accountability Office to raise warnings that many of these conversions involved continued “insider involvement,” presenting risks to students and taxpayers. The Department sought to clarify the requirements and processes institutions must follow in order to expand protections for students and taxpayers. The proposed regulations would clarify the definition of a nonprofit institution to prevent improper financial benefits to a former owner or other affiliate of a college. Additionally, institutions undergoing a change in ownership would be required to notify both the Department and the institution’s students at least 90 days prior to the change to ensure advance notice is provided. Institutions undergoing a change in ownership may also be required to provide additional financial protection or to comply with additional conditions to protect against the risk of the transaction. Extending Pell Grants to incarcerated individuals. Postsecondary programs offered in correctional facilities have been demonstrated to increase students’ skills, improve employment outcomes, and reduce recidivism. Congress recently established eligibility for Pell Grants for incarcerated individuals enrolled in qualifying programs. These proposed regulations, on which negotiators reached consensus, would ensure that state departments of corrections, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, or another entity, as appropriate, fairly assess institutions’
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eligibility to offer prison education programs based on the best interests of the students and with the input of affected stakeholders; clarify requirements for such prison education programs; and ensure transparency and data to demonstrate how well these programs are serving their students. The changes will take effect July 1, 2023. In the interim, the Department expanded its Second Chance Pell program under the Experimental Sites Initiative to serve incarcerated individuals in nearly every state. An Agenda for Equitable Postsecondary Education The changes proposed today are a continuation of the Department’s commitment to protecting students and taxpayers and building a stronger, more accessible higher education system. The Department launched negotiations on affordability and student loan issues with a series of public hearings in June 2021 and released the first set of proposed rules from those negotiations on July 6, 2022. This proposed rule includes negotiators’ consensus agreement on expanding access to Pell Grants to incarcerated students. Another proposed rule related to income-driven repayment is expected to be released in the near future. The Department also formed a rulemaking committee for issues related to ensuring accountability for colleges and programs that receive federal financial aid and completed negotiations in March 2022. These proposed rules include two of the key issues from that rulemaking—regulations governing the 90/10 rule and changes in ownership—with the remainder of the regulations expected to be released in early 2023. The Biden-Harris Administration has demonstrated a commitment to increased accountability, including by requiring entities that operate private colleges, particularly those with potential risk factors, to sign the agreements between colleges and the Department and to assume joint responsibility for any liabilities. These proposed rules, and others to come, will further ensure colleges are held financially accountable for their conduct. Additionally, the Biden-Harris Administration has already approved more than $27 billion in targeted student loan relief for nearly 1.4 million borrowers through executive action. The Department has also announced steps to remedy longstanding problems in the incomedriven repayment plans that will help millions of borrowers move closer to debt forgiveness and tens of thousands more receive immediate forgiveness.
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Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, HR-40 Strategy Group call on Biden to keep commitment
July 21, 2022, Washington, DC – Representative Sheila Jackson Lee and the HR-40 Strategy Group today held a news conference calling on President Joe Biden to issue an Executive Order creating the HR-40 Commission. The Commission would be responsible for examining the Transatlantic Slave Trade and slavery and past and present injustices carried out against African Americans. The Commission would also produce and recommend remedies to the negative effects caused by past discriminatory institutions. The news conference was MC’d by Dr. Ron Daniels, convenor of the National African American Reparations Commission. “Today’s news conference was a call to action for the
nation to improve its relationship with African Americans by addressing the wrongs of slavery and committing to take the necessary steps to make our community whole,” said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, DTexas, who sponsored HR40 Legislation. “This is about freedom and a formal acknowledgment of hiswrongs, and toric recognition of continuing injury against the descendants of the women and men who built this country. The creation of the HR-40 Commission would be reparative and restorative, and it’s long overdue.” The call comes roughly a year and a half after President Biden vowed to issue an executive order to create the Commission. “We are still dealing with
the effects of slavery and the direct impact it has made on Black families and communities throughout the diaspora,” said Dr. Ron Daniels, convenor of the National African American Reparations Commission. “We know that the bulk of this nation’s wealth was built on the backs of enslaved Africans. The fact that centuries later we have yet to create a national reparations commission is an affront to the generations of women and men who were ripped from their homelands, robbed of their culture, and forced to build the wealth of their oppressors. The time for reparations is now, and the creation of the HR-40 Commission is the first step toward making that a reality. “We need President Biden to establish an HR 40 commission to study the impact of trauma from slavery in Black communities to not only deliver reparations, but also bring an end to the injustices and inequality Black people face across our society. It’s beyond time,” said Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-New York. “No segment of America
carries the dual existence of Black Americans – always giving and yet continuously on the receiving end of the worst of this nation,” said Kamm Howard, Director of Reparations United, who recently led a group of reparations leaders for a Vatican visit to discuss the Catholic Church’s role in the Transatlantic Slave Trade and slavery. “The time for change is now by examining the continued wrongs of slavery and taking action to steer our nation on the path of true peace and prosperity for all.” “No segment of America carries the dual existence of Black Americans – always giving and yet continuously on the receiving end of the worst of this nation,” said Kamm Howard, Director of Reparations United, who recently led a group of reparations leaders for a Vatican visit to discuss the Catholic Church’s role in the Transatlantic Slave Trade and slavery. “The time for change is now by examining the continued wrongs of slavery and taking action to steer our nation on the path of true
peace and prosperity for all.” “The time for an Executive Order creating HR-40 is now,” said Joan Neal, Deputy Executive Director of Network Lobby. “Until and unless the country tells the truth about our history and takes responsibility for wrongs committed the against its own citizens, the damage and trauma will continue. The HR-40 Commission would help close the wealth, healthcare, voting, and all the other gaps that force Black Americans to remain as second-class citizens in the country our ancestors built.” “The time for an Executive Order to address HR40 is long overdue,” said Rep. Barbara Lee, D- California. “The President has stated that domestic terrorism against Black people is rooted in the poison of white supremacy, and that’s something we saw firsthand on January 6th. This is an opportunity to begin an educational process and a process of repair to ensure that we are a nation that lives up to the creed of liberty and justice for all.”
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African American History
Paul Robeson was an acclaimed 20th-century performer known for productions like ‘The Emperor Jones’ and ‘Othello.’ He was also an international activist. Paul Robeson was a stellar athlete and performing artist. He starred in both stage and film versions of The Emperor Jones and Show Boat and established an immensely popular screen and singing career of international proportions. Robeson spoke out against racism and became a world activist, and was blacklisted during the paranoia of McCarthyism in the 1950s. 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. 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.
African American Icon: Paul Roberson 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. Robeson made a splash in the theater world as the lead in the 1924 production controversial of All God’s Chillun Got Wings in New York City, and the following year, he starred in the London staging of The Emperor Jones — both by playwright Eugene O’Neill. Robeson also entered film when he
starred in African American director Oscar Micheaux’s 1925 work, Body and Soul. Although he was not a cast member of the original Broadway production of Show Boat, an adaptation of an Edna Furber novel, Robeson was prominently involved in the 1928 London production. It was there that he first earned renown for singing “Ol’ Man River,” a song destined to become his signature tune. In the late 1920s, Robeson and his family relocated to Europe, where he continued to establish himself as an international star through big-screen features such as Borderline (1930). He starred in the 1933 movie remake of The Emperor Jones and would be featured in six British films over the next few years, including the desert drama Jericho and musical Big Fella, both released in 1937. During this period, Robeson also starred in the second big-screen adaptation of Show Boat (1936), with Hattie McDaniel and Irene Dunne. Robeson’s last movie would be the Hollywood production of Tales of Manhattan (1942). He criticized
the film, which also featured legends like Henry Fonda, Ethel Waters and Rita Hayworth, for its demeaning portrayal of African Americans. Having first played the title character of Shakespeare’s Othello in 1930, Robeson again took on the famed role in the Theatre Guild’s 1943-44 production in New York City. Also starring Uta Hagen, as Desdemona, and José Ferrer, as the villainous Iago, the production ran for 296 performances, the longest-running Shakespeare play in Broadway history. A beloved international figure with a huge following in Europe, Robeson regularly spoke out against racial injustice and was involved in world politics. He supported Pan-Africanism, sang for Loyalist soldiers during Spain’s civil war, took part in anti-Nazi demonstrations and performed for Allied forces during World War II. He also visited the Soviet Union several times during the mid-1930s, where he developed a fondness for Russian folk culture. He studied Russian, as did his son, who came to reside in the capital city of Moscow with his grandmother. Yet Robeson’s relationship with the U.S.S.R. became a highly controversial one, his humanitarian beliefs seemingly contrasting with the state-sanctioned terror and mass killings imposed by Joseph Stalin. In the United States, with McCarthyism and Cold War paranoia looming large, Robeson found himself contending with government officials looking to silence a voice who spoke out eloquently against
racism and had political ties that could be vilified. Fueled by the misrepresentation of a speech the actor made at the U.S.S.R-backed Paris Peace Conference in the late 1940s, Robeson was labeled a communist and was staunchly criticized by government officials as well as some African American leaders. He was ultimately barred by the State Department from renewing his passport in
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1950 to travel abroad for engagements. Despite his immense popularity, he was blacklisted from domestic concert venues, recording labels and film studios and suffered financially. Robeson published his autobiography, Here I Stand, in 1958, the same year that he won the right to have his passport reinstated. He again traveled internationally and received a number of accolades for his work, but damage had been done, as he experienced debilitating depression and related health problems. Robeson and his family returned to the United States in 1963. After Eslanda’s death in 1965, the artist lived with his sister. He died from a stroke on January 23, 1976, at the age of 77, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In recent years, efforts have been made by various industries to recognize Robeson’s legacy after a period of silence. Several biographies have been written on the artist, including Martin Duberman’s well-received Paul Robeson: A Biography, and he was inducted posthumously into the College Football Hall of Fame. In 2007, Criterion released Paul Robeson: Portraits of the Artist, a box set containing several of his films, as well as a documentary and booklet on his life.