African-American Politics Essay by Master Researcher

The relationship between African-Americans and the American and global Left in the 20th century has long been characterized as antagonistic and controversial. Nowhere is this ambiguous relationship more evident than in the area of African American culture. The paper shows that while some of the most prominent African-American cultural figures of the century, such as Paul Robeson, were enthusiastic supporters of Communism and saw in this movement the possibility for advancement on equal rights, others, such as Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright, were widely known for their criticisms of Communism with regard to its policies on African-Americans.