My Future Depends Mostly Upon Myself.

Artists Are The Gatekeepers Of Truth.

Every Artist, Every Scientist, Must Decide Now Where He Stands. He Has No Alternative. There Is No Standing Above The Conflict On Olympian Heights. There Are No Impartial Observers. Through The Destruction, In Certain Countries, Of The Greatest Of Man's Literary Heritage, Through The Propagation Of False Ideas Of Racial And National Superiority, The Artist, The Scientist, The Writer Is Challenged. The Struggle Invades The Formerly Cloistered Halls Of Our Universities And Other Seats Of Learning. The Battlefront Is Everywhere. There Is No Sheltered Rear.

You Want To Shut Up Every Negro Who Has The Courage To Stand Up And Fight For The Rights Of His People, For The Rights Of Workers, And I Have Been On Many A Picket Line For The Steelworkers Too.

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.

My Future Depends Mostly Upon Myself.