Peekskill Riots
Encyclopedia
The Peekskill Riots were anti-communist riots with anti-black
and anti-Semitic undertonesthat took place at Cortlandt Manor, Westchester County, New York in 1949. The catalyst for the rioting was an announced concert by black singer Paul Robeson
, who was well known for his strong pro-trade union stance, civil rights
activism, communist affiliations, and anti-colonialism. The concert, organized as a benefit for the Civil Rights Congress
, was scheduled to take place on August 27 in Lakeland Acres, just north of Peekskill.
What came over the wires to news agencies via the AP in the United States was as follows,
Research by historians would later show through time records that the AP had put the dispatch on the wires as Robeson was starting his speech.The comment was not investigated by the US press for its veracity and there was nationwide condemnation of Robeson. In the early stages of the Cold War and Communist expansion in Europe, and its accompanying wide anti-Communist sentiments in the West, was seen by many as very anti-American. The local paper, The Peekskill Evening Star, condemned the concert and encouraged people to make their position on Communism felt, but did not directly espouse violence. There was a racial element to the riots, including burning crosses and lynching in effigy of Robeson both in Peekskill and in other areas of the United States.
, was scheduled to take place on August 27 in Lakeland Acres, just north of Peekskill. Before Robeson arrived, a mob of locals attacked concert-goers with baseball bats and rocks. The local police arrived hours later and did little to intervene. Thirteen people were seriously injured, Robeson was lynched in effigy and a cross seen burning on an adjacent hillside. The concert was then postponed until September 4.Following the concert, request for Klan memberships from the Peekskill area numbered 748 persons.
Robeson's long time friend and Peekskill resident, Helen Rosen, who had been arranged to collect Robeson at the train station had heard on the radio that protesters were massing at the concert grounds. Robeson drove with Rosen and two others to the concert site and saw marauding groups of youngsters, a burning cross on a nearby hill and a jeering crowd throwing rocks chanting "Dirty Commie" and "Dirty Kikes." Paul Robeson made more than one attempt to get out of the car and confront the mob but was restrained by his friends.
The media was flooded with reactions and charges. The Joint Veterans Council of Peekskill refused to admit any involvement describing its activities as a "protest parade... held without disorder and... perfectly disbanded." Peekskill police officials said the picnic grounds had been outside their jurisdiction; a state police spokesman said there had never been a request for state troopers. The commander of Peekskill Post 274 of the American Legion stated: "Our objective was to prevent the Paul Robeson concert and I think our objective was reached."
to hear Robeson speak,
, performed without incident. The aftermath of the concert, however, was far from peaceful. As they drove away, concertgoers were forced to run a gauntlet miles long of hostile locals, veterans, and outside agitators, who threw rocks through windshields of the cars and buses. Much of the violence was also caused by anti-Communist members of local Veterans of Foreign Wars
and American Legion
chapters. Standing off the angry mob of rioters chanting "go on back to Russia, you niggers" and "white niggers", some of the concertgoers and union
members, along with writer Howard Fast
and others assembled a non-violent line of resistance, locked arms, and sang the song "We Shall Not Be Moved." Some people were reportedly dragged from their vehicles and beaten. Over 140 people were injured and numerous vehicles were severely damaged as police stood by.
, Lee Hays, Pete Seeger
, Seeger's wife Toshi, and his infant children. Guthrie pinned a shirt to the inside of the window to stop it shattering. "Wouldn't you know it, Woody pinned up a red shirt," Hays was to remember. Seeger used some of the thrown rocks to build the chimney of his cabin in the Town of Fishkill
, NY, to stand as a reminder of that incident.
veteran, Eugene Bullard
was knocked to the ground and beaten by the angry white mob which included white members of state and local law enforcement. The beating was captured on film and can be seen in the 1970s documentary The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
and the Oscar winning Sidney Poitier
narrated documentary Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist
. Despite recorded evidence of the beating, no one was ever prosecuted for the assault. Graphic photos of Eugene Bullard being beaten by two policeman, a state trooper and concert-goer were later published in Susan Robeson's pictorial biography of her grandfather, The Whole World in His Hands: a Pictorial Biography of Paul Robeson.
to voice their indignation to Governor Thomas Dewey
, who refused to meet with them, blaming communists for provoking the violence. Twenty-seven plaintiffs filed a civil suit against Westchester County
and two veterans groups. The charges were dismissed three years later.
House Representative John E. Rankin
of Mississippi
condemned Robeson on the house floor. When Republican
New York Congressman Jacob Javits spoke to the United States House of Representatives
, deploring the Peekskill riots as a violation of constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech and free assembly, Rankin replied angrily. "It was not surprising to hear the gentlemen from New York defend the Communist enclave," Rankin bellowed, saying that he wanted it known that the American people are not in sympathy "with that Nigger
Communist and that bunch of Reds who went up there." On a point of order, American Labor Party
House Representative Vito Marcantonio
protested to speaker Rayburn that "the gentlemen from Mississippi used the word 'nigger.' I ask that the word be taken down and stricken from the RECORD inasmuch as there are two members in this house of Negro race." Rayburn claimed that Rankin had not said "nigger" but "Negro" but Rankin yelled over him saying "I said Niggra! Just as I have said since I have been able to talk and shall continue to say." Speaker Rayburn then defended Rankin, ruling that "the gentlemen from Mississippi is not subject to a point of order... referred to the Negro race and they should not be afraid of that designation." Then Democratic
Representative Edward E. Cox
of Georgia
denounced Robeson on the House floor as a "Communist agent provocateur."
On September 12, 1949, in response to Robeson's controversial status in the press and Leftist affiliations, National Maritime Union convention considered a motion that Robeson's name be removed from the union’s honorary membership list; the motion was withdrawn for lack of support among members. Later that month, All-China Art and Literature Workers’ Association and All-China Association of Musicians of Liberated China protested the Peekskill attack on Robeson. On October 2, 1949, Robeson spoke at a luncheon for the National Labor Conference for Peace, Ashland Auditorium, Chicago and referenced the riots. Robeson was now left with only a small platform in the Trade Union movement as the majority of his previous friends backed away.
Also in George Mandel's excellent: "Flee the Angry Strangers" published in 1952. There is brief mention of this as current events in the novel.
Black
Black is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
and anti-Semitic undertonesthat took place at Cortlandt Manor, Westchester County, New York in 1949. The catalyst for the rioting was an announced concert by black singer Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
, who was well known for his strong pro-trade union stance, civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
activism, communist affiliations, and anti-colonialism. The concert, organized as a benefit for the Civil Rights Congress
Civil Rights Congress
The Civil Rights Congress was a civil rights organization formed in 1946 by a merger of the International Labor Defense and the National Federation for Constitutional Liberties. It became known for involvement in civil rights cases such as the Trenton Six and justice for Isaiah Nixon. The CRC...
, was scheduled to take place on August 27 in Lakeland Acres, just north of Peekskill.
Paul Robeson's remarks in Paris, 1949
Previously three concerts had been performed by Paul Robeson in Peekskill without incident, but in recent years Robeson had been increasingly vocal against the Ku Klux Klan and other forces of white supremacy, both domestically and internationally. Robeson specifically made a transformation from someone who was primarily a singer into a political persona with a vocal support for what was at the time considered "Communist" causes including the decolonization of Africa, anti-Jim Crow legislation and peace with the USSR. Robeson had also appeared before the House Committee on Un-American Activities to oppose a bill that would require Communists to register as foreign agents, and, just months before the concerts in 1949, he had appeared at the Soviet-sponsored World Peace Conference in Paris. Referring to the growing tensions between the USA and the USSR, he stated:"We in America do not forget that it was the backs of white workers from Europe and on the backs of millions of Blacks that the wealth of America was built. And we are resolved to share it equally. We reject any hysterical raving that urges us to make war on anyone. Our will to fight for peace is strong...We shall support peace and friendship among all nations, with Soviet Russia and the People's Republics."
What came over the wires to news agencies via the AP in the United States was as follows,
"We colonial peoples have contributed to the building of the United States and are determined to share it's wealth. We denounce the policy of the United States government which is similar to Hitler and Goebbels.... It is unthinkable that American Negros would go to war on behalf of those who have oppressed us for generations against the Soviet Union which in one generation has lifted our people to full human dignity."
Research by historians would later show through time records that the AP had put the dispatch on the wires as Robeson was starting his speech.The comment was not investigated by the US press for its veracity and there was nationwide condemnation of Robeson. In the early stages of the Cold War and Communist expansion in Europe, and its accompanying wide anti-Communist sentiments in the West, was seen by many as very anti-American. The local paper, The Peekskill Evening Star, condemned the concert and encouraged people to make their position on Communism felt, but did not directly espouse violence. There was a racial element to the riots, including burning crosses and lynching in effigy of Robeson both in Peekskill and in other areas of the United States.
First concert on August 27, 1949
The concert, organized as a benefit for the Civil Rights CongressCivil Rights Congress
The Civil Rights Congress was a civil rights organization formed in 1946 by a merger of the International Labor Defense and the National Federation for Constitutional Liberties. It became known for involvement in civil rights cases such as the Trenton Six and justice for Isaiah Nixon. The CRC...
, was scheduled to take place on August 27 in Lakeland Acres, just north of Peekskill. Before Robeson arrived, a mob of locals attacked concert-goers with baseball bats and rocks. The local police arrived hours later and did little to intervene. Thirteen people were seriously injured, Robeson was lynched in effigy and a cross seen burning on an adjacent hillside. The concert was then postponed until September 4.Following the concert, request for Klan memberships from the Peekskill area numbered 748 persons.
Robeson's long time friend and Peekskill resident, Helen Rosen, who had been arranged to collect Robeson at the train station had heard on the radio that protesters were massing at the concert grounds. Robeson drove with Rosen and two others to the concert site and saw marauding groups of youngsters, a burning cross on a nearby hill and a jeering crowd throwing rocks chanting "Dirty Commie" and "Dirty Kikes." Paul Robeson made more than one attempt to get out of the car and confront the mob but was restrained by his friends.
The media was flooded with reactions and charges. The Joint Veterans Council of Peekskill refused to admit any involvement describing its activities as a "protest parade... held without disorder and... perfectly disbanded." Peekskill police officials said the picnic grounds had been outside their jurisdiction; a state police spokesman said there had never been a request for state troopers. The commander of Peekskill Post 274 of the American Legion stated: "Our objective was to prevent the Paul Robeson concert and I think our objective was reached."
Meetings to protest the first riot
Following a meeting of local citizens, union members and Robeson supporters who formed "The Westchester Committee for Law and Order", it was unanimously determined that Robeson should be invited back to perform at Peekskill. Representatives from various left wing unions-the Fur and leather workers, the Longshoremen and the United Electrical Workers- all agreed to converge and serve as a wall of defense around the concert grounds. Ten union men slept on the property of the Rosens, effectively guarding it. A call was then put out by the "Emergency Committee to Protest the Peekskill Riot." On Tuesday, August 30, an overflow of crowd of three thousand people assembled peacefully and without incident at the Golden Gate Ballroom in HarlemHarlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
to hear Robeson speak,
- "I will be loyal to America of true traditions; to the America of the abolitionists, of Harriet Tubman, of Thaddeus Stevens, of those who fought for my people's freedom, not of those who tried to enslave them. And I will have no loyalty to the Forrestals, to the Harrimans, to the WallStreeters... the surest way to get police protection is to have it very clear that we'll protect ourselves, and good!... I'll be back with my friends in Peekskill...."
Second concert on September 4, 1949
The re-scheduled concert itself was free from violence, though marred by the presence of a police helicopter overhead and the flushing out of at least one sniper's nest. The concert was located on the grounds of the Hollow Brook Golf Course in Cortlandt Manor, near the original site of the concert. Twenty-thousand people showed up. Security, organized by labor unions, was tight with union men standing in a circle of protection around the entire concert grounds and sitting with Robeson on the stage. Musicians, such as Pete SeegerPete Seeger
Peter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
, performed without incident. The aftermath of the concert, however, was far from peaceful. As they drove away, concertgoers were forced to run a gauntlet miles long of hostile locals, veterans, and outside agitators, who threw rocks through windshields of the cars and buses. Much of the violence was also caused by anti-Communist members of local Veterans of Foreign Wars
Veterans of Foreign Wars
The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States is a congressionally chartered war veterans organization in the United States. Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, VFW currently has 1.5 million members belonging to 7,644 posts, and is the largest American organization of combat...
and American Legion
American Legion
The American Legion is a mutual-aid organization of veterans of the United States armed forces chartered by the United States Congress. It was founded to benefit those veterans who served during a wartime period as defined by Congress...
chapters. Standing off the angry mob of rioters chanting "go on back to Russia, you niggers" and "white niggers", some of the concertgoers and union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
members, along with writer Howard Fast
Howard Fast
Howard Melvin Fast was an American novelist and television writer. Fast also wrote under the pen names E. V. Cunningham and Walter Ericson.-Early life:Fast was born in New York City...
and others assembled a non-violent line of resistance, locked arms, and sang the song "We Shall Not Be Moved." Some people were reportedly dragged from their vehicles and beaten. Over 140 people were injured and numerous vehicles were severely damaged as police stood by.
Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie
One car carried Woody GuthrieWoody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
, Lee Hays, Pete Seeger
Pete Seeger
Peter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
, Seeger's wife Toshi, and his infant children. Guthrie pinned a shirt to the inside of the window to stop it shattering. "Wouldn't you know it, Woody pinned up a red shirt," Hays was to remember. Seeger used some of the thrown rocks to build the chimney of his cabin in the Town of Fishkill
Fishkill (town), New York
Fishkill is an affluent suburban town in the southwest part of Dutchess County, New York, USA. The population was 20,258 at the 2000 census, however, current estimates put the town's population at over 22,100. Fishkill partly surrounds the city of Beacon....
, NY, to stand as a reminder of that incident.
The beating of Eugene Bullard
The first black combat pilot and decorated World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
veteran, Eugene Bullard
Eugene Bullard
Eugene Jacques Bullard was the first black military pilot and the only black pilot in World War I along with Ahmet Ali .-Early life:...
was knocked to the ground and beaten by the angry white mob which included white members of state and local law enforcement. The beating was captured on film and can be seen in the 1970s documentary The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
The Tallest Tree in our Forest is a 1977 documentary film directed and written by Gil Noble, about singer, actor and activist, Paul Robeson. The tallest tree was shot on 16mm and was started shortly before Robeson's death at age 77 in 1976. The film features rare archival footage, interviews, and...
and the Oscar winning Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier
Sir Sidney Poitier, KBE is a Bahamian American actor, film director, author, and diplomat.In 1963, Poitier became the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field...
narrated documentary Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist
Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist
Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist is a 1979 short documentary film directed by Saul J. Turell. It won an Academy Award in 1980 for Documentary Short Subject.-Cast:* Paul Robeson - Himself * Sidney Poitier - Narrator...
. Despite recorded evidence of the beating, no one was ever prosecuted for the assault. Graphic photos of Eugene Bullard being beaten by two policeman, a state trooper and concert-goer were later published in Susan Robeson's pictorial biography of her grandfather, The Whole World in His Hands: a Pictorial Biography of Paul Robeson.
Protests for justice following the concert
Following the riots, more than 300 people went to AlbanyAlbany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
to voice their indignation to Governor Thomas Dewey
Thomas Dewey
Thomas Edmund Dewey was the 47th Governor of New York . In 1944 and 1948, he was the Republican candidate for President, but lost both times. He led the liberal faction of the Republican Party, in which he fought conservative Ohio Senator Robert A. Taft...
, who refused to meet with them, blaming communists for provoking the violence. Twenty-seven plaintiffs filed a civil suit against Westchester County
Westchester County, New York
Westchester County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. Westchester covers an area of and has a population of 949,113 according to the 2010 Census, residing in 45 municipalities...
and two veterans groups. The charges were dismissed three years later.
Reactions in The US House of Representatives
Following the Peekskill Riots, DemocraticDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
House Representative John E. Rankin
John E. Rankin
John Elliott Rankin was a Democratic congressman from the U.S. State of Mississippi who supported racial segregation and, on the floor of the United States House of Representatives, voiced racist views on African Americans and Jews and even accused Albert Einstein of being a communist agitator.In...
of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
condemned Robeson on the house floor. When Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
New York Congressman Jacob Javits spoke to the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, deploring the Peekskill riots as a violation of constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech and free assembly, Rankin replied angrily. "It was not surprising to hear the gentlemen from New York defend the Communist enclave," Rankin bellowed, saying that he wanted it known that the American people are not in sympathy "with that Nigger
Nigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
Communist and that bunch of Reds who went up there." On a point of order, American Labor Party
American Labor Party
The American Labor Party was a political party in the United States established in 1936 which was active almost exclusively in the state of New York. The organization was founded by labor leaders and former members of the Socialist Party who had established themselves as the Social Democratic...
House Representative Vito Marcantonio
Vito Marcantonio
Vito Anthony Marcantonio was an American lawyer and democratic socialist politician. Originally a member of the Republican Party and a supporter of Fiorello LaGuardia, he switched to the American Labor Party.-Early life:...
protested to speaker Rayburn that "the gentlemen from Mississippi used the word 'nigger.' I ask that the word be taken down and stricken from the RECORD inasmuch as there are two members in this house of Negro race." Rayburn claimed that Rankin had not said "nigger" but "Negro" but Rankin yelled over him saying "I said Niggra! Just as I have said since I have been able to talk and shall continue to say." Speaker Rayburn then defended Rankin, ruling that "the gentlemen from Mississippi is not subject to a point of order... referred to the Negro race and they should not be afraid of that designation." Then Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Representative Edward E. Cox
Edward E. Cox
Edward Eugene "Eugene" or "Goober" Cox served as a U.S. Representative from Georgia for nearly twenty-eight years. A conservative Democrat who supported segregation and opposed President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's "New Deal," Cox became the most senior Democrat on the House Committee on Rules...
of Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
denounced Robeson on the House floor as a "Communist agent provocateur."
Aftermath
Within a few days, hundreds of editorials and letters appear in newspapers across the nation and abroad, by prominent individuals, organizations, trade unions, churches and others. They condemned not only the attacks but also the failure of Governor Dewey and the State Police to protect the lives and property of citizens, and called for a full investigation of the violence and prosecution of the perpetrators. Despite condemnation from progressives and civil rights activists, the mainstream press and local officials overwhelmingly blamed Robeson and his fans for "provoking" the violence. Following the Peekskill riots, other cities become fearful of similar incidents, and over 80 scheduled concert dates of Robeson's were canceled.On September 12, 1949, in response to Robeson's controversial status in the press and Leftist affiliations, National Maritime Union convention considered a motion that Robeson's name be removed from the union’s honorary membership list; the motion was withdrawn for lack of support among members. Later that month, All-China Art and Literature Workers’ Association and All-China Association of Musicians of Liberated China protested the Peekskill attack on Robeson. On October 2, 1949, Robeson spoke at a luncheon for the National Labor Conference for Peace, Ashland Auditorium, Chicago and referenced the riots. Robeson was now left with only a small platform in the Trade Union movement as the majority of his previous friends backed away.
Legacy and reconciliation ceremonies
In recent years, Westchester County has gone to great lengths to make amends to the survivors of the Riots by holding a commemorative ceremony, at which an apology was made for their treatment. In September 1999, county officials held a "Remembrance and Reconciliation Ceremony, 50th anniversary commemoration of the 1949 Peekskill riots." It included speakers Paul Robeson, Jr., folk singer Peter Seeger and several local elected officials.The Peekskill Riots in fiction
- The Peekskill riots appears in E.L. Doctorow's novel The Book of DanielThe Book of Daniel (novel)The Book of Daniel is semi-historical novel by E. L. Doctorow, loosely based on the trial and execution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg...
. Paul Isaacson leaves the bus to reason with the mob, and is beaten up by them. - The riots figure prominently in T.C. Boyle's World's EndWorld's End-In the arts:*World's End , a novel by Upton Sinclair*World's End , a novel by T. Coraghessan Boyle*World's End , a novel by Mark Chadbourn*World's End , a major event of the Wildstorm Universe...
. The protagonist's parents serve as local organizers of the concert.
Also in George Mandel's excellent: "Flee the Angry Strangers" published in 1952. There is brief mention of this as current events in the novel.
The Peekskill Riots in recording and film
- Song: "Hold the Line" recorded by Pete Seeger and The Weavers
- Song: "My Thirty Thousand" written by Woody Guthrie and later recorded by Billy BraggBilly BraggStephen William Bragg , better known as Billy Bragg, is an English alternative rock musician and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, and his lyrics mostly deal with political or romantic themes...
and WilcoWilcoWilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup has changed frequently, with only singer Jeff Tweedy and bassist John... - Song: "Three Chords and The Truth" written and recorded by Ry CooderRy CooderRyland Peter "Ry" Cooder is an American guitarist, singer and composer. He is known for his slide guitar work, his interest in roots music from the United States, and, more recently, his collaborations with traditional musicians from many countries.His solo work has been eclectic, encompassing...
- Song: "The Peekskill Story" (Casetta/Hayes/Seeger) The WeaversThe WeaversThe Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City. They sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children's songs, labor songs, and American ballads, and selling millions of records at the height of their...
with Howard Fast and Pete Seeger - Radio: NPR's 50th anniversary commemoration of Peekskill Riots
- Radio: The Peekskill Riots, Maryknoll Sisters radio documentary
- Video: The Robeson Concerts
- Video: Paul Robeson: Here I Stand, PBS American Masters
- Video: Paul Robeson: Speak of Me As I Am BBC
- Film: Joe Glory
- Film: Paul Robeson: The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
- Film: Paul Robeson: Portrait of an Artist
External links
- The Robeson Concerts: Peekskill, New York, 1949
- FBI documents on the Peekskill Riots peekskil_riots.htm document removed
- The Peekskill Story
- Courtney, Steve. "Peekskill's days of infamy: The Robeson riots of 1949," The Reporter Dispatch, September 5, 1982. Sec. AA: pp. 1,4-5.
- Silverstein, Richard. "Peekskill Riots--1949." [Weblog entry] Tikun Olam: Make the World a Better Place. June 16, 2004.
- Daniel Frontino Elash Peekskill Remembered