Plan to eliminate the American actor Paul Robeson.

[harry]

The plan to eliminate the American actor Paul Robeson,together with the Jamaican labour leader Alexander Bustamante,in Jamaica,November 1948,was possibly the first action of the cold war,to stop a Soviet expansion into the Carribean.Anyone any knowledge of this plan?

[Phil H]

Why would killing those two men have stopped anything?

Phil H

[harry]

Phil,
Both were considered to have strong communist connections.Bustamante w as at that time,very active in pursuing independence for Ja maica.He had served prison time for his activities.An independent communist Jamaica,aligned with communist Russia could be a serious threat to the region.W hy?.Because Jamaica has one of the finest natural deep harbours in the world,capable of servicing any size of naval fleet.American suspicions of Robeson,whether fanciful or real,are well documented.The November visit was seen as a political rallying call to the people of Jamaica to solidly support Bustamante in his drive for independence.Independence leading to communism.In addition there w as a third party involved.They call themselves the 'Last colonials'.A mere three per cent of the Islands population,mainly white Europeans, who owned and controlled most all of Jamaica.Remember we are writing of 1948,the year after the cold war started.I was there Phil.

[sdreid]

I think eliminating (if you mean killing) Robeson would have just made him a martyr and thus have been counterproductive. Marginalizing him was more effective. Robeson was certainly entitled to his opinion and I don't see any good evidence that he did anything treasonous so his treatment was unfair in my assessment despite the fact that I would almost totally disagree with his views.

[Ginger]

Had there been a plan to kill Paul Robeson, I think he'd have been killed. It wouldn't have been that hard.

[Errata]

Who was going to kill them? Robeson was an old school communist, like most Americans were. They became attracted to the movement during the revolution, sort of waited to see what Lenin would make of it, and most of them were bitterly disappointed in Stalin. In a weird way, they were more communist than the Russia of the late 40s. I'm not saying that there was no plot, just that out of all the people to choose to assassinate, these guys should not have been high on the list.

[harry]

It is easy to look back and think of Robeson and Bustamante as minor players in a big game,but that was not the view of interested parties of the time.One only has to take the Cuba crisis of later years,to understand the concern of communison taking a hold in that region.I was in the military,stationed in Jamaica in 1948,and Bustamante was certainly a person considered of high interest,so much so,that every observed sighting of him by a member of the forces,had to be reported.Understand that Jamaica then,was British territory,and the people living there were British subjects,subject to British law.It's population of about a million and a half,of whom only3% were classed as white,were mainly the descendents of slaves,and most held a deep resentment of their white masters,and their white masters held great fears of a challenge to their power,and it was these fears that,in the main, dictated events.Making a martyr of anyone was the least worrying aspect.So the why is not hard to understand,nor is the who.It was the how and where.The place chosen was a rally held in a recreation area situated along what is now Orange Street,Montego Bay,Jamaica,opposite the old Jewish cemetary,and abbuting a British Military camp.Both Robeson and Bustamante would be appearing there together.I was stationed at that camp,and it was my knowledge of what happened there,that led me to believe what I was later told,and why the plan was aborted at the last moment.Yes it would have been easy.The plan was brilliant in it's simplicity,but as sometimes happen,fate steps in.

[Errata]

So the why is not hard to understand,nor is the who.It was the how and where.

No I get why Bustamante. Robeson seems to me more a target of opportunity that a target of importance. But I'm still not solid on who was going to do the killing. Great Britain?