The Peekskill Riots: “The Mighty Oak in the Forest” Hybrid Screening

The First Episode of The Peekskill Riots docu-series will be screened at the Underground Railroad Education Center. There will be a Q&A held afterward hosted by the filmmaker, Jon Scott Bennett. This event will be held in-person in Albany, as well as shown over Zoom simultaneously.

Please register for the in-person screening through this page. If you would like to join over Zoom, please join at the following link:

On August 27 and September 4th, 1949, violence broke out at two concerts held outside Peekskill, NY, headlined by black singer, actor, and activist Paul Robeson. Citizens of Peekskill, galvanized by racist and anti-Semitic sentiments and disdain for Robeson’s left-wing views and campaign for civil rights, started two riots that resulted in hundreds of injuries, made national news, and unofficially marked the beginning of the McCarthy era, which would nearly erase Robeson from the public consciousness. Who was he? What did he do? What did he stand for? These questions must be answered in order to understand what brought him to Peekskill.

This first episode of a 5-part docu-series serves not only as an introduction to the story of the concerts, but also introduces the headlining performer, Paul Robeson, the first and last casualty of The Peekskill Riots.

Also check out other Music events in Albany, Entertainment events in Albany, Concerts in Albany.