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Freedomways    Third Quarter 1969

Paul Robeson entered Rutgers in 1915 on a state scholarship. He was the sole Negro on the campus, the son of a former slave and the third Negro to enter Rutgers in 150 years. He immediately tried out for football, as part of an amazing schedule of academic, athletic, cultural and community interests.

From the outset he encountered discrimination. Because he was a Negro, Paul Robeson was not invited to attend a pre-season training camp at the beginning of his freshmen year. Thereby, he did not enjoy the same benefit as the rest of the football squad.2

When the football squad returned from camp, they continued training. Now Paul Robeson was involved. He played with those members of the squad known as the "scrub," candidates for a varsity position.

Varsity members, with ingrained racism reinforced by dog-eat-dog competitiveness, did not want a Negro on their team. They did not want to judge him on his merits.

Rather they ganged up to break him physically. The aim was to compel him to drop out of football. The entire episode of the racist gang-ups is described by Eslande Goode Robeson in her biography of her husband.3 It is also described by Paul Robeson himself as follows:

"I was 17 years old...I was a freshman trying to make the team. Rutgers had a great team that year, but the boys, well-they din't want a Negro on their team...Later, they became my friends, but every word of this is true and though they are my friends I think they won't mind telling it. On the first day of scrimmage, they set about making sure that I couldn't get on their team. One boy slugged me in the face and smashed my nose...that's been a trouble to me as a singer every day since; and then when I was down, flat on my back, another boy got me with his knee...he managed to dislocate my right shoulder...I had ten days in bed, a few days at the training table and then out for another scrimmage. I made a tackle and was on the ground. A boy came over and stepped hard on my hand. He meant to break my bones. The bones held, but his cleats took every one of the finger-nails off my right hand...That is when I knew rage!

"The next play came around my end; teh whole first string back-field came at me. I swept out my hands like this and the three men running interference went down. The ball-carrier was a first-class back named Kelly. I wanted to kill him...I got Kelly in my two hands and I got him over my head...I was going to smack him

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