Paul Robeson in Albany ~ May 9th, 1947

A significant civil rights event occurred in Albany in 1947. At that time, during Mayor Erastus Corning's tenure in office, the legendary artist, scholar, civil rights champion and political figure Paul Robeson scheduled a concert of Negro spiritual music in Philip Livingston Junior High School in Albany. The Albany Board of Education had approved the concert in September 1946. On April 22, 1947 the concert permit was revoked after Mayor Corning called the Board's attention to the fact that the House Committee on Un-American Activities had named Robeson as "one of a group invariably found supporting the Communist Party and its front organizations and that on one occasion Robeson had sung Communist songs as an encore at a concert." (Albany Times-Union, May 7, 1947, pp. 1,3) In a front page story on April 24, 1947, the Albany Times-Union reported that Mayor Corning said he was "heartily in accord" with the action of the Board in canceling permission for the musical recital by Robeson.

That appeared to be the final word, but Arthur Harvey, an Albany attorney, in calling the action "a slur on the Negro people as a whole" (Albany Times-Union, April 24, 1947), stated that further action on Mr. Robeson's behalf was contemplated. An appeal was made to the State Supreme Court and on May 6, 1947, three days before the scheduled concert, Justice Isadore Bookstein issued an injunction restraining the Albany Board of Education from interfering with the concert (New York Times, Albany Times-Union, May 7, 1947). The injunction had its own sting, though, for it restricted Robeson to singing only and permitted the City of Albany to halt the concert if Robeson delivered a speech (New York Times, May 7, 1947, p. 29).

Dissatisfied with this, the Veteran's Joint Memorial Day Board, at a meeting in Albany City Hall, adopted a motion declaring: "Every good American is urged to stay away from the Paul Robeson concert whether he talks or sings. (Albany Times-Union, May 8, 1947). The concert went on, to standing ovations by a virtual full house of over 1,000 on the evening of May 9, 1947. Though there were tense moments when Robeson sang several songs from the Spanish Civil War a decade earlier, the concert was without violence and the Albany Times-Union stated that "Robeson blesses the ears with the melody of a beautiful voice" (Albany Times-Union, May 10, 1947). Prior to the concert, Robeson stated in an interview that he was planning to refrain from commercial performances for two years, not knowing that an effective ban on such concerts would actually last a decade.

Supreme Court Justice Bookstein, in allowing the concert, said that the cancellation notice stated no reason whatsoever for the action and that the only subsequent explanation given was objection to Robeson. Mayor Corning defended his position on the ground that school buildings should not be used for "controversial affairs." (New York Times, May 7, 1947, p. 29).

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