Sports and Civil Rights Movement
By: Jake Johnson Jackie Robinson became the first black athlete to play Major League Baseball in the 20th century when he took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. After his discharge in the Army in 1944, Robinson began to play baseball professionally. The sport was segregated at the time and whites and African-Americans had different leagues. After playing couple games in the Negro league Robinson was soon chosen by Branch Rickey the president of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Robinson joined the Montreal Royals, a farm team for the Brooklyn Dodgers, in 1946. Robinson later moved to Florida for spring training with the Royals. Ricky knew for Robinson it’d be a difficult time for him, so Ricky made Robinson promise he wouldn’t fight back when confronted to racism. Some of Robinson’s new teammates even went behind his back
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On April 15, each season every team in the majors celebrates Jackie Robinson Day in honor of when he truly broke the color barrier in baseball. Robinson stood up for equal rights even before he played baseball. He was arrested and court-martialed during training in the Army for refusing to move to the back of a segregated bus. In his decade-long career with the Dodgers, Robinson and his team won the National League pennant several times. Finally, in 1955, he helped them achieve the ultimate victory: winning the World Series. After failing before in four other series matchups, the Dodgers beat the New York Yankees. He helped the team win one more National League pennant the following season. In December 1956, Robinson was traded to the New York Giants, but he never played a game for the team. He retired on January 5, 1957. After he has opened a door for all African-Americans to play the sport and the sport is mostly all African-Americans today. He was a inspiration to baseball and taught everyone colored can play with
Jackie Robinson was not just a great baseball player, but he was also a great man who had enormous amount of courage and pride. Once Jackie Robinson entered Major League Baseball in April of 1947, he became the first African American to break the so-called color barrier, paved the way for the civil rights movement and also changed the anti-racist struggle. Jackie Robinson was born on January 31 1919, in Cairo, Georgia, who was raised in relative poverty by a single mother. Throughout his life, Jackie attended John Muir HIgh School and Pasadena Junior College, where he became an excellent athlete of our sports: football, basketball, track, and baseball. Jackie continued In 1941, despite his athletic success, Robinson was forced to leave UCLA just shy of graduation due to financial hardship.
Jackie Robinson was the first African American player in the MLB (Major League Baseball.) Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, 1919. In the early 1940´s Robinson met nurse-in-training Rachel Isum Robinson, while they were both attending the University of California. Robinson fought very hard to play on an all white MLB team called the Brooklyn Dodgers and eventually made it in 1947. Jackie Robinson was an amazing baseball player with a batting average of .311, 137 homeruns, 197 stolen bases, and .409 on base percentage!
He was one of the greatest baseball players. In 1947, Jackie Robinson joined the Brooklyn Dodgers. He was the first African-American baseball player to join the Major Leagues. As an African-American he faced racial discrimination in life and on the baseball diamond. From 1896-1964 racial segregation was legal in the United States.
"Clonk" went the baseball bat on April 15, 1947. Jackie Robinson was a famous baseball player. Robinson was the first African-American to play Major League baseball. He died on October 24, 1972 at the age of 53 of a heart-attack. It is about early life, beginning of care after death.
He stared to play baseball with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947 then he got the Rookie of the Year and MVP in 1949. He won his first world series in 1955. 1962 was when he got chosen to go into the Hall of Fame. In 1949 he lead the league with 37 stolen bases and a batting average of .342 than in 1949-54 he got pick to go to the All-Star team. Personal life From 1942 to 1944, Robinson served as second lieutenant in the United States Army, however, he never saw combat (Biography.com).
Robinson played for the Kansas City Monarchs in the Negro Leagues. Robinson played very well in the Negro Leagues, so that’s how president Branch Rickey found Robinson. He then offered him the chance to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Rickey wanted a competitive, yet able to control his temper, and good baseball player to break the color barrier and play for the Dodgers. The scouts saw Robinson and showed him to Branch Rickey and they decided he was just perfect.
He played with the negro league until April 11th, 1947, when got recruited by the Dodgers. On April 15, 1947 is when everything; Jackie Robinson is an official team member of the Dodgers. When this happened he was the headline of several magazines, such as Time & Life magazine. Once everybody found out it finally hit Jackie that he was the first official black person in the MLB. Robinson was overly stoked about it, but knew he had to keep his composure.
That summer, Rickey selected Robinson to integrate baseball. In 1946, he played second base for the Dodgers, and they made it to the World Series. (ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures, n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2016. .)
He was considered impressive with how he played. He then played his first ever game for the Dodgers on April 15, 1947. That day is now known as "Jackie Robinson Day". Jackie Robinson then retired on January 5, 1957.
“Because of him, by the 1970’s half of all major league players were black” (Graf 2). Jackie Robinson was to be considered a hero to many, he’s overcome discrimination just to do what his heart desired –baseball. If it weren’t for Robinsons experiences, then who knows if anyone would have been able to work through discrimination, the color barrier of the Major Leagues and eventually integrate baseball like he did. After the civil rights movements there was still a color barrier on many things including baseball.
The reason for having the Negro Leagues was because it very unlikely to have a colored person be on the same field as a white person. However, one man who stands alone Jackie Robinson’s defeat to break the color barrier in baseball with the help of Branch
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.
Violent mail stating that “…somebody was going to get hurt if Robinson didn’t get out of baseball” was sent to the Dodgers. Instead of playing a clean game, pitchers aimed for his head, and some teams threatened not to play against the Dodgers. Moreover, his teammates tried to have him banned from the team. Jackie was not even allowed to stay at the same hotels or eat with his white teammates Jackie Robinson endured so much on and off the field, yet he never let it interfere with his game. Winning the National League's Most Valuable Player award in 1949, Jackie was without a doubt a great player and leader.
His play on the baseball diamond and the way he acted towards racism inspired a generation of African Americans to question the doctrine of “separate but equal” that 17 states had adopted in the US. Robinson finally broke his emotional and political silence in 1949 (4 years into his MLB career) and became an outspoken and controversial opponent of racial discrimination. He also objected to the Jim Crow practices in the southern states where most baseball clubs conducted spring training. What African Americans admired him for was that he was a black man with courage to stand up against injustice. He paved the way for the Civil Rights Movement with the help of other great activists and
Jackie Robinson challenged white America’s societal perception of African American at the time. “Robinson won Rookie of the Year in 1947. In later seasons, more African-Americans joined other teams in the Major Leagues, as Robinson continued to excel. His success gained him fans from all over the country.” (Mcbirney 14).