Native Land — A Docudrama narrated by Paul Robeson

Scarcely shown since its debut, Native Land represents Paul Robeson’s shift from narrative cinema to the leftist documentaries that would define the final chapter of his controversial film career.

By the start of World War II, Paul Robeson had given up his lucrative mainstream work to participate in more socially progressive film and stage productions. Robeson committed his support to Paul Strand and Leo Hurwitz’s political semidocumentary Native Land. With Robeson’s narration and songs, this beautifully shot film exposes violations of Americans’ civil liberties and is a call to action for exploited workers around the country.

We will be joined by Joy Barnes-Johnson from the Paul Robeson House of Princeton to discuss this seminal work.