I've learned that my people are not the only ones oppressed... I have sung my songs all over the world and everywhere found that some common bond makes the people of all lands take to Negro songs as their own.
Paul RobesonRead
My mother was born in your state, Mr. Walter, and my mother was a Quaker, and my ancestors in the time of Washington baked bread for George Washington's troops when they crossed the Delaware, and my own father was a slave.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the deep historical connections and sacrifices of Robeson's ancestry, emphasizing themes of heritage and resilience.
In this quote, Paul Robeson reflects on his rich family history and the significance of their contributions to American history, particularly during the Revolutionary War, while also acknowledging the stark contrast of his father's status as a slave. It speaks to the legacy of struggle and strength passed down through generations, illustrating how personal and national histories intertwine.
Themes
HeritageResilienceHistoryStruggleAncestry
In practice
Example use cases
During a history presentation highlighting contributions of African Americans.
More from Paul Robeson
All quotes →We ask for nothing that is not ours by right, and herein lies the great moral power of our demand.
Paul RobesonRead
The intolerance of the few, or the risk of it, carries the day against the wider humanity of the many.
Paul RobesonRead
I shall take my voice wherever there are those who want to hear the melody of freedom
Paul RobesonRead
And at home in the United States we found continued and increased persecution, first of leaders of the Communist Party, and then of all honest anti-fascists.
Paul RobesonRead
Art is not just to show life as it is, but to show life as it should be.
Paul RobesonRead
Similar quotes
The first democratic revolution was England in the 1640s.
Noam ChomskyRead
I deliberately did not read anything about the Vietnam War because I felt the politics of the war eclipsed what happened to the veterans. The politics were irrelevant to what this memorial was.
Maya LinRead
When I was growing up in Virginia, the Civil War was presented to me as glorious with dramatic courage and military honor. Later, I realized how death was central to the reality. It was at the core of women's lives. It's what they talked about most.
Drew Gilpin FaustRead
Some of the most moving experiences I've had are just in black churches in the South, during the Civil Rights Movement, where people were getting beaten, killed, really struggling for the most elementary rights.
Noam ChomskyRead
All historical writing, even the most honest, is unconsciously subjective, since every age is bound, in spite of itself, to make the dead perform whatever tricks it finds necessary for its own peace of mind.
Carl L. BeckerRead
History will tell you that borders are not inevitable, they hardly existed at the end of the 19th century.
Rutger BregmanRead