Jackie Robinson And Racial Integration

Washington D.C.- Monday June 18th, 1960, Jackie Robinson has finally met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. King wanted to discuss the civil rights movement plans with Robinson. After a long discussion King only had one thing to say to the press, “It’s time for the black destroyer to conquer once again.”

Born into a society of racial discrimination, Jack Roosevelt Robinson, known as Jackie Robinson, became an inspiring African American who stood up to racial hate and became the first black man to play major league baseball outside of a segregated black league (Biography.com).

Jackie Robinson overcame his struggles that he experienced in his life and still became one of the greatest baseball players of all time.

Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color line and became the first African American to play on a major sports team.Robinson was born on January 31, 1919 and went to college at UCLA after high school. He married Rachel Robinson in 1946 and had three children. Robinson died on October 24, 1972 with great accomplishments.Jackie Robinson may be the most important figure in America's history for being the first African American to join the major leagues in baseball, for breaking the color barrier in the sport, and for changing baseball for everyone.

October 23, 1945, Jackie Robinson shook hands with Branch Rickey, officially changing baseball and society, signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Robinson grew up in a poor household in Pasadena, California. He attended UCLA, making himself a four sport star athlete . Major league baseball had been segregated at the time, with the only black men playing in separate Negro Leagues. Branch Rickey, the owner of the Dodgers, wanted to break the color barrier. To do that, he had to find someone that could withstand racial discrimination and learn to not fight back when dealt with harsh criticism. Jackie Robinson took an amazing risk when he became the first African-American athlete to play in the major leagues. Robinson has been a huge inspiration to athletes, paving the way for blacks, not just in the game of baseball, as well as being an outspoken activist for the rights of American-Americans.

Baseball to Jackie Robinson was gateway to freedom, he was inspired by his older brother to pursue a career for what he had a talent and a love for athletics and Baseball. Jackie was arrested and court-martialed for refusing to give up his seat and move to the back of a segregated bus, but because of his reputation he received an honorable discharge. His courage and moral objection to segregation were precursors to the impact Robinson would have in major league baseball. Jackie Robinson broke the ‘’color barrier’’ by becoming the first African American to play Major League Baseball and inspired young black men to follow in his path and follow their dreams. Not only did he break the color barrier but he changed the society of America itself.

Jackie Robinson is known to be one of the most influential people in baseball and in society. He eternally changed the aspect of American history. It was unusual to have a colored person be treated equally as a white person during the time of the 1900s. He was born in Cairo, Georgia in 1919 and later moved to Pasadena, California to pursue a better life. He came from a poor family of sharecroppers in the South and was the youngest of five. Robinson’s older brother Matthew Robinson was the person who inspired Jackie to pursue his talents and love for sports. Matthew won a silver medal in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games just behind Jesse Owens. Jackie did it all, he excelled in all types of sports it came natural to him. He attended Pasadena Junior College then later continued his education at UCLA where he became the first athlete to win varsity letters in four sports: basketball, football, track, and baseball.

As Jackie Robinson once said “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives”. There is no doubt that Jackie Robinson has been one of most impactful baseball players to ever play the sport. For reasons such as pushing himself to reach his goals, facing many hardships, and being the first African American to play in the MLB, he has shown perseverance and been a role model to everyone.

Created in 1839, baseball has become a very popular sport. Over its 178 years of cheering and enjoyment, there has been man trials and errors. One problem in this game was segregation. Segregation originates all the way back to 1619 when slavery started. At this time, many whites showed much hatred against blacks and they were separated. Born into segregation, Jackie Robinson grew up in a town called Pasadena, California but he was not just the average African American boy. Jackie was a great baseball player and showed most of his braveness on the field. Despite the challenges, Jackie Robinson inspired the non segregation movement by being the first colored man to play in the MLB.

Jackie Robinson fought to end segregation, and the rights for all people through many different ways. The most recognized and probably the biggest thing he did was transform all sports through being the first African American to play professional baseball. This did not only stop discrimination in baseball but this helped stop discrimination in all sports together. After his impact on baseball he wasn't done there, he join the National Association for the advancement of colored people. He became the chairman for the freedom fund and later raised over a million dollars. Jackie Robinson devoted his life to the civil rights movement by breaking the color barrier, transforming the face of sports, his work as an activist to stop segregation, and make the country the best it could be.

Sports Magazine featured Robinson as the most significant athlete of that quarter century (Schutz 157). Many things can be learned from the awe-inspiring man that Jackie Robinson was. There is the obvious lesson to never give up and to follow your dreams, no matter what obstacles are placed in front of you . The deeper lesson, however, is to fight hard for what you believe in and never accept intolerance of any kind, be it race or religion. At first, Jackie was just another black man who was subject to racism; but, he fought that with every ounce of energy he had. Throughout the course of his life and baseball career, he overcame many obstacles, unthinkable to others, and went on to not only gain the respect of blacks and whites; he went on to become one of the greatest and most admired baseball players of all time. In an interview after a game, Branch Rickey was quoted saying “He’s the indispensable man that can carry a team by himself.” Jackie will be remembered for generations to come as a role model to

An icon is a person or thing regarded as a representative symbol of something. This man was not only an Icon in baseball, but a civil rights leader, a father of three, and a role model for all young adults. Jackie Robinson was a small town boy who had big-time dreams. He was from a small city in Georgia and always had outstanding athletic abilities. Not only was Jackie a baseball player, but he also played a major role in breaking the color barrier. Jackie Robinson has lived a successful life due to his determination to break color barriers, his determination to prove people wrong, and his outstanding athletic abilities.

Jackie was the first African American MLB baseball player that inspired many people to join the MLB as well. Jack Robinson was born on January 31, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia. Ever since he was little he was involved in many sports but his favorite one was baseball. “I have memories. I remember standing alone at first base-the only black man on the field. I had to fight hard against my loneliness, abuse, and the knowledge that any mistake I made would be magnified because I was the only black man out there.” (Robison 287). This quote tells the readers that Robinson knows that everything he does matters because he’s the only black man on the fields, and how important it is for him to succeed. Jackie was not just known for baseball but also supporting civil rights duties.

“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.” (Jackie Robinson).

The social change that was seen in this movie is that there is a shift of more blacks in the stands with the white people. There was definitely a transition from Jackie Robinson team mates, to the community and fans not accepting him at all to more people accepting him. Fans and team mates used to boo and say awful racial slurs to him in the beginning and it shifted to people cheering him on in the crowd because he was able to steal bases and win them through the game and his character. There were many scenes that the movie zoomed in on which was how Pee Wee put his arm around Jackie Robinson which represented unity. It showed that if players like him who’s well known from that area can respect him that it doesn’t make him different than anyone