Paul Robeson - Speak of Me As I Am (1998)

Speak Of Me As I Am tells the story of one of America’s foremost African-American citizens, whose courageous stance against oppression and inequality was a forerunner to the civil rights movement of the 1960s. It examines his remarkable life and achievements as a scholar, athlete, artist, social activist and humanitarian. His passion for the stage and screen was matched by his dedication to social justice. Weaving together archive footage of Robeson and interviews with commentators including biographer, Martin Duberman, the film captures the courage and determination that drove Robeson to succeed as a black artist in a white world, to fight against racial inequality in the US and combat oppression around the globe. It traces Robeson’s journey from class valedictorian at university to international stardom and his ultimate fall from grace because of his political views, with which an initially adoring American public could not come to terms.

"To be free - to walk the good American earth as equal citizens, to live without fear, to enjoy the fruits of our toil, to give our children every opportunity in life - that dream which we have held so long in our hearts is today the destiny that we hold in our hands." ROBESON

Narrator Pam Grier.

No Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington is nowhere to be found on this video. This is, nevertheless, a well-done introduction to the amazing story of this amazing man. Still, I think that "Paul Robeson: Here I Stand," narrated by Ossie Davis, is better done. February 22, 2008

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