Bertha Capen Reynolds (December 11, 1885 – October 29, 1978) was an American social worker who was influential in the creation of strength-based practice, radical social work and critical social work, among others.

Bertha Capen Reynolds born in Brockton, Massachusetts, on December 11, 1887 to Mary (Capen) Reynolds and Franklin Stewart Reynolds.[2] Her father died while she was a young child, and she moved with her mother to Boston to work as a teacher.

Reynolds' aunt paid for her to attend Smith College, where she graduated in 1908 with a Bachelor of Social Work. She suffered from an unknown illness during this time. In 1912–1913, Reynolds enrolled in the Boston School for Social Workers (later known as the Simmons College School of Social Work.) She graduated in 1914 with a second Social Work degree. At this time, she described her professional goals as "...a desire to help poor people and the Negro and to be able to earn her living."

After her graduation, she worked for a short time at the North End Health Clinic. In 1917 Smith College began running a psychiatric social work degree, and she enrolled.

1919 saw the publication of a monograph, The Selection of Foster Homes for Children, with Mary S. Doran. From 1919 until 1923, she worked as director of social services at Danvers State Hospital in Massachusetts. From 1923 until 1925, Reynolds worked in new clinics for behavioral training of pre-school children in the Division of Mental Hygiene in Boston.[2]

In 1925, Reynolds returned to Smith, now serving as associate director of the Smith College School for Social Work, teaching courses in the summer term and supervising students' field placements during the rest of the year; conducted research and had clinical assignments at the Child Guidance Clinic in Philadelphia and at the Institute for Child Guidance and the Jewish Board of Guardians in New York. In 1935, her position at Smith changed, and she became the associate director in charge of advanced courses. This year, Reynolds established and taught the first advanced course, Plan D, for the training of supervisors and teachers of social work.

During this period she used Marxist analysis as an element of the course, and attempted to unionize college employees. This was not well received by the Dean. In 1937, Reynolds offered her resignation to Everett Kimball, director of the School for Social Work, due to their disagreement over the direction of the program, her political activities, and the termination of Plan D. Reynolds left Smith in 1938, after teaching the last group in the Plan D program.

Between 1939 and 1942, Reynolds was self-employed as a consultant in staff development for social work agencies.

Reynolds published her major work for social work educators, Learning and Teaching in the Practice of Social Work, describing the contributions of psychology and the social sciences to the problems of practice and teaching in social work in 1942.

Between 1943 and 1947, Reynolds was appointed by the United Seamen's Service to the Personal Service Department of the National Maritime Union, where she became case supervisor. She drew on this experience to write Social Work and Social Living, which was published in 1951.

In 1948, Reynolds retired to the family home in Stoughton, where she studied Marxist works, corresponded with friends and former students, had a small clinical practice, and worked as a volunteer on community projects, for the Methodist Church, and the Stoughton Historical Society.

Paul Leroy Robeson April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976 was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his political stances.

In 1915, Robeson won an academic scholarship to Rutgers College. While at Rutgers, he was twice named a consensus All-American in football and was the class valedictorian. He received his LL.B. from Columbia Law School while playing in the National Football League (NFL). After graduation, he became a figure in the Harlem Renaissance with performances in The Emperor Jones and All God's Chillun Got Wings.

Robeson performed in Britain in a touring melodrama, Voodoo, in 1922, and in Emperor Jones in 1925. In 1928, he scored a major success in the London premiere of Show Boat. Living in London for several years with his wife Eslanda, Robeson continued to establish himself as a concert artist and starred in a London production of Othello, the first of three productions of the play over the course of his career. He also gained attention in Sanders of the River (1935) and in the film production of Show Boat (1936). Robeson's political activities began with his involvement with unemployed workers and anti-imperialist students in Britain, and it continued with his support for the Republican cause during the Spanish Civil War and his involvement in the Council on African Affairs (CAA).

After returning to the United States in 1939, Robeson supported the American and Allied war efforts during World War II. However, his history of supporting civil rights causes and Soviet policies brought scrutiny from the FBI. After the war ended, the CAA was placed on the Attorney General's List of Subversive Organizations. Robeson was investigated during the McCarthy era. Due to his decision not to recant his public advocacy, he was denied a passport by the U.S. State Department; his income, consequently, plummeted. He moved to Harlem and published a periodical called Freedom,[4] which was critical of United States policies, from 1950 to 1955. Robeson's right to travel was eventually restored as a result of the 1958 United States Supreme Court decision Kent v. Dulles.

Between 1925 and 1961, Robeson recorded and released some 276 songs. The first of these were the spirituals "Steal Away" (backed with "Were You There") in 1925. Robeson's recorded repertoire spanned many styles, including Americana, popular standards, classical music, European folk songs, political songs, poetry and spoken excerpts from plays.