The Politics of Harry Belafonte

Harry Belafonte was America's first black superstar and a pioneer in movies and film. Because he's just turned 80, the Guardian has a profile on him. Belafonte has clearly always committed to political activism, and has put the fight for civil rights ahead of his career. Unfortunately his radicalism was often blunted by working with people like Martin Luther King and the Kennedy's, but its sounds like he might be more radical these days. He denounces America's war in Iraq and has branded George Bush 'the world's greatest terrorist'. Today he has little time for the sham of political consensus, and likes to see himself as working 'outside the box' of conventional politics.