Jackie Robinson's Influence On Society

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.

Army in 1941. Jackie was stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii where he joined the semi-professional football team Honolulu Bears. In 1944, Robinson was discharged from the Army because of racial discrimination. Robinson dealt with racism throughout his entire life especially more often when he made it to the Major Leagues. After being discharged from the Army, Jackie decided to continue to play baseball for the Negro Leagues. 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