The Artist Must Elect To

As An Artist I Come To Sing, But As A Citizen, I Will Always Speak For Peace, And No One Can Silence Me In This.

In All Spheres Of Modern Life The Influence Of Stalin Reaches Wide And Deep. From His Last Simply Written But Vastly Discerning And Comprehensive Document, Back Through The Years, His Contributions To The Science Of Our World Society Remain Invaluable. One Reverently Speaks Of Marx, Engels, Lenin And Stalin—the Shapers Of Humanity’s Richest Present And Future.

Yes, I Heard My People Singing!-in The Glow Of Parlor Coal-stove And On Summer Porches Sweet With Lilac Air, From Choir Loft And Sunday Morning Pews-and My Soul Was Filled With Their Harmonies. Then, Too, I Heard These Songs In The Very Sermons Of My Father, For In The Negro's Speech There Is Much Of The Phrasing And Rhythms Of Folk-song. The Great, Soaring Gospels We Love Are Merely Sermons That Are Sung; And As We Thrill To Such Gifted Gospel Singers As Mahalia Jackson, We Hear The Rhythmic Eloquence Of Our Preachers, So Many Of Whom, Like My Father, Are Masters Of Poetic Speech.

Through The Years I Have Received My Share Of Recognition For Efforts In The Fields Of Sports, The Arts, The Struggle For Full Citizenship For The Negro People, Labor's Rights And The Fight For Peace.

The Talents Of An Artist, Small Or Large, Are God-given... They Are A Sacred Trust.