1950s American Ideology Witch Hunt and Art Censorship: Case of Black Celebrity Actor Paul Robeson

• Published in: 영미연구, 54(0) pp. 55 - 74
• Main Author: 박정만
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 영미연구소 01.02.2022
• Subjects: 학제간연구
• ISSN: 2508-4135; 2508-5417

The 1950s was a period of ‘Great Expectations’ for the United States, both politically and economically. Faced with a new phase of the world order called the Cold War, the US replaced Britain’s glory and position in the past and emerged as a representative and real power of Western Democracy. In addition, the 1950s was one of the longest periods of sustained economic growth in the US history. Accordingly, American citizens had a growing sense of pride that they ‘were’ the members of the world’s strongest and wealthiest nation. The 1950s is remembered as one of the best times in American history, and such optimistic sentiments were confirmed in the realms of reality as well as mass media of television dramas and magazines. On the other hand, American citizens turned into a silent generation insensitive to the problems in reality, and the United States turned to a conservative society dominated by the anti-Communist ideology of McCarthyism. In this regard, the 1950s America also tells a different story. This decade was the worst time for an American citizen Paul Robeson (1898-1976) who was a celebrity actor and activist. In the 1950s, this public figure met a reversal of fate especially in the face of the prevailing anti-Communist sentiment. His passport was cancelled, and this ‘American’ celebrity was classified as an ‘Un-American’ reactionary. This paper traces the case of racial and art censorship brought by American political ideology in the 1950s, focusing on the personal history of the African American artist Paul Robeson. KCI Citation Count: 0