Randall Robinson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Randall M. Robinson
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Robinson and Hazel Ross-Robinson returning from the inauguration of Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 1994
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| Born | July 6, 1941 Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
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| Died | March 24, 2023 (aged 81) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education |
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| Employer |
Dickinson School of Law, Penn State University
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| Title | Distinguished Scholar in Residence |
| Spouse(s) |
Hazel Ross-Robinson (m. 1987)
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| Parent(s) |
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| Relatives |
Max Robinson (brother)
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Randall Robinson (born July 6, 1941 – died March 24, 2023) was an American lawyer, writer, and activist. He is best known for starting an organization called TransAfrica Forum. He strongly spoke out against apartheid, which was a system of racial separation in South Africa. He also worked hard to help Haitian immigrants and the former Haitian leader, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. In 2001, Robinson moved to St. Kitts because he was not happy with American society.
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Early Life and Education
Randall Robinson was born in Richmond, Virginia, on July 6, 1941. His parents, Maxie Cleveland Robinson and Doris Robinson Griffin, were both teachers. His older brother was Max Robinson, a well-known news anchor for ABC News.
Randall Robinson went to Virginia Union University. He later earned a law degree (called a J.D.) from Harvard Law School. He also had two sisters, Jewel and Jean, who live and work in the Washington, D.C. area.
Randall Robinson's Career and Activism
Before becoming a famous activist, Robinson worked as a civil rights lawyer in Boston from 1971 to 1975. He then worked for two U.S. Congressmen, Bill Clay and Charles Diggs.
In 1977, Robinson started the TransAfrica Forum. This organization focuses on research and education for the African-American community. It looks at how U.S. policies affect Africa and people of African descent in the Caribbean and Latin America. He was the president of TransAfrica until 2001.
During his time at TransAfrica, Robinson became well-known for his activism. He organized sit-ins at the South African embassy to protest apartheid. Apartheid was a harsh system in South Africa that treated black people unfairly and separated them from white people.
He also went on a hunger strike to help bring Jean-Bertrand Aristide back to power in Haiti. Aristide was the president of Haiti who had been removed from his position. Robinson also protested trade policies he felt were unfair to Caribbean nations. He once dumped crates of bananas at a U.S. government office to show his disapproval of high taxes (tariffs) and limits (quotas) on imports.
In 2001, Robinson wrote a book called The Debt: What America Owes To Blacks. In this book, he argued that African Americans should receive reparations. This means he believed the U.S. government should make up for the centuries of unfair treatment and oppression that African Americans faced. He suggested that these programs could help fix ongoing social and economic problems in the black community.
In 2008, Robinson began teaching law at the Dickinson School of Law at Penn State University.
Why Randall Robinson Moved from the U.S.
In 2001, Randall Robinson left his job at TransAfrica and moved to St. Kitts. His wife was born there and her family is well-known on the island. He wrote a book about this decision called Quitting America: The Departure of a Black Man from his Native Land.
Robinson explained that he moved because he disagreed strongly with many of America's policies. He believed these policies often harmed minority groups and people who were poor.
Randall Robinson's Family and Passing
Randall Robinson had a daughter, Anike, and a son, Jabari, from a previous marriage. He was married to Hazel Ross-Robinson, and they had a daughter named Khalea Ross Robinson.
Randall Robinson passed away in St. Kitts on March 24, 2023, at the age of 81.
Randall Robinson's Books
- An Unbroken Agony: Haiti, From Revolution to the Kidnapping of a President, Perseus Books Group, 2007. ISBN: 0465070507
- Quitting America: The Departure of a Black Man From His Native Land, Plume Books (Reprint), 2004. ISBN: 0452286301
- The Reckoning: What Blacks Owe to Each Other, Plume (Reprint), 2002. ISBN: 0452283140
- The Debt: What America Owes to Blacks, Plume, 2001. ISBN: 0452282101
- Defending the Spirit, Plume, (1999). ISBN: 0452279682
