--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whether I am or am not a Communist is…" description: "\"Whether I am or am not a Communist is irrelevant. The question is whether American citizens, regardless of their political beliefs or sympathies, may e..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d95/paul-robeson-8458_american-citizens_whether-i-am-or-am-not-a-communist-is-ir_3157311.jpg" --- # Whether I am or am not a Communist is irrelevant. The… ![“Whether I am or am not a Communist is irrelevant. The question is whether American citizens, regardless of their political beliefs or sympathies, may enjoy their constitutional rights.” quote by Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d95/paul-robeson-8458_american-citizens_whether-i-am-or-am-not-a-communist-is-ir_3157311.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d95/paul-robeson-8458_american-citizens_whether-i-am-or-am-not-a-communist-is-ir_3157311.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d95/paul-robeson-8458_american-citizens_whether-i-am-or-am-not-a-communist-is-ir_3157311.jpg) > “Whether I am or am not a Communist is irrelevant. The question is whether American citizens, regardless of their political beliefs or sympathies, may enjoy their constitutional rights.” [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political labels are less important than protecting constitutional rights for all citizens. **In simple terms:** Rights matter more than ideology. Key Takeaway Defend universal rights regardless of belief. Themes rights politics equality citizenship Mood concerned determined Type political inspirational When to use this quote - public policy - voting - community activism - legal battles Key Concepts civil liberties political identity social justice Questions to Reflect On - What rights are most threatened today? - How can we ensure rights are protected for all political views? A Different Perspective Ideological debates can distract from core freedoms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American citizens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-citizens/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Citizens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizens/) [Communist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communist/) [Communist Irrelevant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communist-irrelevant-5693230/) [Constitutional rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constitutional-rights/) [Enjoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enjoy/) [Irrelevant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irrelevant/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political beliefs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-beliefs/) [Question American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/question-american-3455395/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) ## Related quotes > [American citizens should not lose their constitutional rights because they lack the money to pay for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-kerik/american-citizens-should-not-lose-their-constitutional-rights-because/) [Bernard Kerik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-kerik/) > [ The question's whether or not there's an American interest in the Civil War \[in Syria\]. The question is whether or not a military strike… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/the-question-s-whether-or-not-there-s-an-american-interest-in-the/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [In the old days, you dealt with one regulator. Now it's five or six. You all should ask the question how American that is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-dimon/in-the-old-days-you-dealt-with-one-regulator-now-it-s-five-or-six-you/) [Jamie Dimon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-dimon/) > [The question of whether we were misled into the war in Iraq isn't a liberal or conservative or Republican or Democratic question, it's an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/the-question-of-whether-we-were-misled-into-the-war-in-iraq-isn-t-a/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [ The first question \[American college kids\] asked me was, 'What state is Kuwait in?' They thought Kuwait was in America. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayshay/the-first-question-american-college-kids-asked-me-was-what-state-is/) [Ayshay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayshay/) > [The most important question in American cinema, I've learned, is 'When is lunch?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-lee-jones/the-most-important-question-in-american-cinema-i-ve-learned-is-when/) [Tommy Lee Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-lee-jones/) > [Those life experiences that helped shaped my political beliefs are with me in every position I take and every vote that I cast -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-takano/those-life-experiences-that-helped-shaped-my-political-beliefs-are/) [Mark Takano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-takano/) > [Atrocities are human nature - they don't have political beliefs, color, creed or anything like that. They just happen, it's human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clancy-brown/atrocities-are-human-nature-they-don-t-have-political-beliefs-color/) [Clancy Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clancy-brown/) > [If you think that a social media platform is a proper location to argue your political beliefs you should probably just shut the hell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-think-that-a-social-media-platform-is-a-proper-location-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Does poetry - or language or philosophy or music or architecture, even that of our temples - really need to dance to the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-rosa-menocal/does-poetry-or-language-or-philosophy-or-music-or-architecture-even/) [Maria Rosa Menocal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-rosa-menocal/) > [ \[Music\] is the one thing that connects the dots in all kinds of ways. No matter how you were brought up, no matter what… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-chesney/music-is-the-one-thing-that-connects-the-dots-in-all-kinds-of-ways-no/) [Kenny Chesney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-chesney/) > [“ridiculous if not positively touched, filthy and mean-spirited to be so poor, vain to have airs and graces when so poor, superstitious to hold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/ridiculous-if-not-positively-touched-filthy-and-mean-spirited-to-be/) [Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/) > [But artistically, my art I kept very separate from my political beliefs, deliberately and very, very rarely would I allow that kind of thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barry/but-artistically-my-art-i-kept-very-separate-from-my-political/) [Robert Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barry/) > [Judging corporations for their political beliefs is like judging artists for their personal lives: Pointless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/judging-corporations-for-their-political-beliefs-is-like-judging/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The IRS, now known for abusing its power by targeting groups for their political beliefs, is a prime example of an overgrown federal agency…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-meadows/the-irs-now-known-for-abusing-its-power-by-targeting-groups-for-their/) [Mark Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-meadows/) ## More by Paul Robeson > [I found a special eagerness among the younger, and I am sorry to say, the more intelligent Negroes, to dismiss the spiritual as something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/i-found-a-special-eagerness-among-the-younger-and-i-am-sorry-to-say/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [Through my singing and acting and speaking, I want to make freedom ring. Maybe I can touch people's hearts better than I can their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/through-my-singing-and-acting-and-speaking-i-want-to-make-freedom/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [Artists are the gate keepers of truth. We are civilization’s radical voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/artists-are-the-gate-keepers-of-truth-we-are-civilization-s-radical/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [To be free . . . to walk the good American earth as equal citizens, to live without fear, to enjoy the fruits of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/to-be-free-to-walk-the-good-american-earth-as-equal-citizens-to-live/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [With Othello, Shakespeare posed this problem of a black man in a white society in the role that he's playing. And Shakespeare gave Othello…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/with-othello-shakespeare-posed-this-problem-of-a-black-man-in-a-white/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [Get them to sing your song and they will want to know who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/get-them-to-sing-your-song-and-they-will-want-to-know-who-you-are/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [ We \[must\] realize that our future lies chiefly in our own hands. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/we-must-realize-that-our-future-lies-chiefly-in-our-own-hands/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [But the deep desire for peace remained with the American people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/but-the-deep-desire-for-peace-remained-with-the-american-people/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [Through the years I have received my share of recognition for efforts in the fields of sports, the arts, the struggle for full citizenship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/through-the-years-i-have-received-my-share-of-recognition-for-efforts/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [In all spheres of modern life the influence of Stalin reaches wide and deep. From his last simply written but vastly discerning and comprehensive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/in-all-spheres-of-modern-life-the-influence-of-stalin-reaches-wide/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [Artists are the radical voice of civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/artists-are-the-radical-voice-of-civilization/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [The artist must elect to fight for Freedom or for Slavery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/the-artist-must-elect-to-fight-for-freedom-or-for-slavery/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [The man who accepts Western values absolutely, finds his creative faculties becoming so warped and stunted that he is almost completely dependent on external…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/the-man-who-accepts-western-values-absolutely-finds-his-creative/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [Vast quantities of U.S. bombers, tanks and guns have been sent against Ho Chi Minh and his freedom-fighters; and now we are told that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/vast-quantities-of-u-s-bombers-tanks-and-guns-have-been-sent-against/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [Four hundred million in India, and millions everywhere, have told you, precisely, that the colored people are not going to die for anybody: they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/four-hundred-million-in-india-and-millions-everywhere-have-told-you/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) [Explore all 80 Paul Robeson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) ## More American citizens quotes > [Let us at all times remember that all American citizens are brothers of a common country, and should dwell together in bonds of fraternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/let-us-at-all-times-remember-that-all-american-citizens-are-brothers/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Think about it: we went into slavery pagans; we came out Christians. We went into slavery pieces of property; we came out American citizens.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/think-about-it-we-went-into-slavery-pagans-we-came-out-christians-we/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [I want to say unequivocally that while I cherish every person who comes from anywhere, who comes here legally and seeks to pursue happiness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/i-want-to-say-unequivocally-that-while-i-cherish-every-person-who/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [There's been a systematic propagandizing of American citizens for 30 years to make us forget what America is supposed to be and what our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/there-s-been-a-systematic-propagandizing-of-american-citizens-for-30/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [We have a bunch of American citizens who step up because that's what we do. We'll step up and go across the world to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-reed/we-have-a-bunch-of-american-citizens-who-step-up-because-that-s-what/) [Ed Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-reed/) > [Having spent 37 years of my life in the military as a reservist, and never having met a gay in all of that time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/having-spent-37-years-of-my-life-in-the-military-as-a-reservist-and/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) > [“I am a citizen of this country,” I declare, “and Mr. Mayor, tonight I will be a citizen of this city when I put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-ash/i-am-a-citizen-of-this-country-i-declare-and-mr-mayor-tonight-i-will/) [Jerry Ash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-ash/) > [Think of the undying glory that hangs around the ancient name of Africa and forget not that you are native-born American citizens, and as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-highland-garnet/think-of-the-undying-glory-that-hangs-around-the-ancient-name-of/) [Henry Highland Garnet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-highland-garnet/) > [A large portion of American citizens, especially people of color, have lost confidence in our criminal justice system. Many have called for appointing special…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-simmons/a-large-portion-of-american-citizens-especially-people-of-color-have/) [Russell Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-simmons/) > [Our Navy was very largely sunk. And we were at war in no time at all. I share, in retrospect, the distress we all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-a-rusher/our-navy-was-very-largely-sunk-and-we-were-at-war-in-no-time-at-all-i/) [William A. Rusher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-a-rusher/) > [As long as my record stands in federal court, any American citizen can be held in prison or concentration camps without trial or hearing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-korematsu/as-long-as-my-record-stands-in-federal-court-any-american-citizen-can/) [Fred Korematsu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-korematsu/) > [“It may sound reactionary, I know. But we can all feel it. We've changed the way we think of ourselves as citizens. We don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/it-may-sound-reactionary-i-know-but-we-can-all-feel-it-we-ve-changed/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [So after a long time of utilizing the American propaganda machine, along with official statements of lies, distortion and falsehood, the focus was basically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naji-sabri/so-after-a-long-time-of-utilizing-the-american-propaganda-machine/) [Naji Sabri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naji-sabri/) > [You are an American, so you're hurt that other American citizens have been hurt, but you end up having to shoulder the shame for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/you-are-an-american-so-you-re-hurt-that-other-american-citizens-have/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [Now, how do you explain Obama's claim, that he can kill American citizens without due process? Well, he has his attorney general get up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-mcgovern/now-how-do-you-explain-obama-s-claim-that-he-can-kill-american/) [Ray McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-mcgovern/) [Browse all 242 American citizens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-citizens/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whether I am or am not a Communist is irrelevant. 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