Paul Robeson is regarded as the first Black superstar of stage and screen. A hugely talented actor and singer, Robeson was also a professional football player and gifted academic. American audiences loved him. But in the late 1930s at the height of his fame, Robeson's political and ideological beliefs led to a spectacular fall from grace, with the entertainer eventually being summoned before the House Un-American Activities Committee amid the notorious anti-communist fervor that was sweeping across the United States. Though blacklisted, Robeson's outspoken criticism of racism and support for socialism endeared him to many. His voice was never silenced.
Click on to learn more about how Paul Robeson became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his political stances.