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Abstract
This project is a study of the relationship developed between African Americans and the Soviet Union, primarily on the 1920s and 30s. The paper examines the antecedents and causalities for the Black community's interest in Communism and for African American individuals' travels. This information provides a contextual understanding for the experiences of three specific travelers: Harry Haywood, representing the Black Communists who traveled; Oliver Golden, representing the Black technicians who went to the USSR; and Langston Hughes, one of numerous Black artists who went during the period. The paper briefly traces the political and social activities of these individuals after returning to the United States. Furthermore, this project recognizes the significance of these travels for continuing Black protest in the United States.
Introduction
The end of World War I ushered in a new era for African Americans who had been radicalized by their participation in the war and were resisting an oppressive second-class citizenship at home. There were numerous organizations activating the struggle of African Americans for the reestablishment of their civil rights. Among these organizations was the newly formed Communist Party of the United States of America. Communist doctrine advocating racial equality and the success of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia precipitated African American travel from the U.S. to the Soviet Union in the 1920s and 30s. Accounts of Black travelers' experiences in the Soviet Union, dialogue surrounding race relations there and the development of a Communist Party platform on the "Negro Question" may have encouraged further Black enthusiasm in travel to the USSR. African Americans went to the Soviet Union both in search of a permanent solution to White supremacy and seeking respite from disenfranchisement at home, as is evidenced by the experiences of Harry Haywood, Oliver Golden and Langston Hughes, in particular.
The phenomenon of African American travel to the Soviet Union during this period was shaped by a dynamic web of social, political and economic factors. The work and experiences of those Blacks who went to the USSR heightened the interest of the African American community in Communist ideology and aided in emboldening individuals to struggle for their rights. In this manner, those African American individuals who traveled to the Soviet Union in the 1920s and 30s contributed to...