We all know Jackie Robinson as being the first black major league baseball player. But most people don’t see how Jackie changed America. There are many things that Jackie did that not many people know about, but there is a lot people do know about him. A few things that most people know about him is one he broke the color barrier in major league baseball. Two he was exceptional base runner. And three he served in the United States Army. Things that people don't know about him is one he attended UCLA where he was the first athlete to letter in four varsity sports. Two he was the chairman for National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). As you can see Jackie Robinson did not waste his life, he achieved so many things it …show more content…
He joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, he was a great addition to the team. Although he faced so much ridicule every single day, he still didn't let that stuff get to him. He was the only African American playing major league baseball. Jackie has changed American baseball for the better. Jackie was also a great base runner. He was able to steal home 19 times setting the league record at the time. He was able to help the brooklyn Dodgers win the World Series in 1955. “Before he retired, he became the highest-paid athlete in Dodgers history” (Jackie Robinson). The Brooklyn Dodgers retired Jackie Robinson's number in 1972, he wore the number 42. They made a couple movies about him but the most recent and my personal favorite is the movie 42. Jackie Robinson was just an overall great baseball …show more content…
“In 1942, Jackie Robinson was drafted into the military to a segregated cavalry unit in Kansas. There he also faced discrimination…” (Jackie Robinson's Military Career). He made to the ranking of second lieutenant, but after he refused to move to the back of a military bus he was honorably discharged in 1944 because of this epidemic. He later joined a semi-professional football team and then later started his baseball career. Jackie Robinson attended UCLA where he became the first person to letter in four varsity sports. Jackie ran track, played football, baseball, and basketball. He was obviously exceptional at all these sports but baseball was his passion. At the Jackie Robinson stadium at UCLA there is a bronze statue of him, so people don't forget this legend. All though Jackie was on an athletic scholarship for UCLA he had to leave school due to family issues. Resulting in him not receiving his
As time went on, Jackie began to have a great love for sports. He admired basketball, track, football, and of course the wonderful baseball. He did very well in all of these sports and won many trophies. He went on to play football for the Honolulu Bears. After that, he decided to serve his country, and go to war.
Jack Roosevelt Johnson was born in the very segregated south in Cairo, Georgia around 1919. Jackie grew up loving baseball and knew that is what he wanted to do. About two decades before Jackie was born the MLB was split between white and Negro leagues. Jackie being an African-American, of course played for the Negro Leagues. He strived in this sport. He lead the Negro League with most stolen bases and had a great batting average. Both his statistics and love for the game brought the name Jackie Robinson to the attention of the Brooklyn Dodger's manager Branch Rickey.
He spent his whole professional career with the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947-1956. He put up crazy numbers during his career which led to 6 all-star team selections, a World Series championship, Rookie of the Year, NL MVP, 2 time stolen base leader and a league batting champion. Jackie wore number 42, which was later retired by the MLB. He was later inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1962. Jackie Robinson should not only be recognized for his on-field accomplishments, but for what it took for him to get there as well. Throughout all of the racism in America and baseball, he endured it and pushed through it to set himself up for ultimate success. He endured the hardships of being the only African-American in the league at the time and taking all the hate from the racists, while still putting up remarkable numbers. Even as a white man during the time of integration in baseball you could have nothing but respect for Jackie Robinson. Especially if you were a Dodgers fan, considering he did accomplish many things not even the best white baseball players were
Jackie was born and raised in Cairo, Georgia 1919. He was raised by his single mother Mallie along with is four siblings. He was the first person at UCLA to obtain a varsity letter in baseball, basketball, football, and track. He married Rachel Isum who he met at UCLA. He however had to leave school due to financial reasons and decided to enlist in the military, but was honorably discharged due to being court-martialed due to his actions against racial discrimination. Jackie played one season in 1945 with the Kansas City Monarchs leading to further achievements in his professional baseball career.
Jackie loved playing any sport, he really did love sports. Robinson ran track, played football, played baseball, and basketball in college. People would treat him like a prize on the field but off the field it was like he wasn't a person he was a thing. While Jackie was staring in all these sports he was at UCLA and he ended up winning the NCAA championship in long jump. He was also the first person to letter in four sports in UCLA history.
According to (History.com) it says, “Jackie Robinson made history in 1947 when he broke baseball's color barrier to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers.”. This is one reason Jackie Robinson is admirable due to his accomplishments because when he broke the color barrier he opened a door to many African Americans to play the game which brought all people together in baseball. Another reason Jackie is admirable due to his accomplishments is according to (History.com) it states, “A talented player, Robinson won the National League Rookie of the Year award his first season, and helped the Dodgers to the National League championship – the first of his six trips to the World Series.” This is another reason Robinson was admirable due to his accomplishments because he gave African Americans hope that all people would be able to play the game together one day. One last reason Jackie Robinson was admirable due to his accomplishments is according to (History.com) it says, “In 1997, 50 years after Robinson integrated baseball his number, 42, was permanently retired by every team in Major League Baseball.”. This shows that Jackie was admirable due to his accomplishments because if people were willing to retire his number from baseball and honor that number, he must to have done a lot to be that admirable, and that’s exactly what he had done. In conclusion, Robinson was one of the most admirable men due to his
Jackie Robinson was the first African American to play Major League Baseball. This was not an easy task for him to do. People judged him and didn’t like him by the color of his skin. Jackie Robinson said “The hate mail piled up” (Robinson). That shows that no one cared to give him a chance to play in the Major League. The innocence of young kids had a great inspiration on Jackie Robinson because they didn’t care about his color they just wanted him to play good. Jackie Robinson was “proud to be a part of a significant breakthrough” (Robinson) in breaking the color barrier. Even though Jackie Robinson has been through
Jackie Robinson changed the way baseball is looked at by Americans. Also, he broke a huge barrier in American History. Robinson helped get rid of segregation. He also, is down as one on of the most respected men in baseball history. Not only a wonderful ball player, but also a wonderful man who went through so much and helped create a path for current and future African American baseball players.
According to Jessie Jackson, "A champion wins a World Series or an Olympic event and is hoisted on the shoulders of the fans. A hero carries the people on his shoulders" (Robinson 3). This is what made Jackie Robinson a hero to African-Americans. Robinson's achievement goes beyond the statistics and championships he earned on the field. He opened the door for his entire race to play professional sports and gain acceptance as more desegregation took place. After fighting in World War II from 1941 until 1944, Jackie played for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues from 1944 until 1946. In 1946, he was selected as the best person to break the color barrier in Major League Baseball.
After his departure from the Army he joined the Kansas City Monarchs, an all African-American baseball team, of the Negro League. Due to low pay and constant traveling, he decided he did not want to make baseball a career although he was one of the top players. Until 1947 only white players were allowed in Major League Baseball but in 1945 Clyde Sukeforth, a scout for Branch Rickey who was the Brooklyn Dodgers club president, had been looking for an African-American player and was watching Jackie for a while.
To the average person, in the average American community, Jackie Robinson was just what the sports pages said he was, no more, no less. He was the first Negro to play baseball in the major leagues. Everybody knew that, but to see the real Jackie Robinson, you must de-emphasize him as a ball player and emphasize him as a civil rights leader. That part drops out, that which people forget. From his early army days, until well after his baseball days, Robinson had fought to achieve equality among whites and blacks. "Jackie acted out the philosophy of nonviolence of Martin Luther King Jr., before the future civil rights leader had thought of applying it to the problem of segregation in America"(Weidhorn 93). Robinson was an avid member of the NAACP and helped recruit members because of his fame from baseball. Jackie had leadership qualities and the courage to fight for his beliefs. Unwilling to accept the racism he had run into all his life, he had a strong need to be accepted at his true worth as a first-class citizen. Robinson was someone who would work for a cause - that of blacks and of America - as well as for himself and his team.
Jackie Robinson’s ability to successfully integrate his sport set the stage for many others to advocate for an end to segregation in their respective environments. His period of trials and triumphs were significant to changing American perception of the Civil Rights revolution. By becoming the first African-American baseball player to play in the major leagues, he brought down an old misconception that black athletes were inferior to white athletes. Successively, his example would inspire those advocating for their civil rights, he lived out a message of nonviolence similar to the one Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lived out. Despite the constant prejudice he faced in his sport, he was able to keep himself composed and never retaliate.
Number 42 was one of the most inspiring people to me and other people. He did a lot to help get rid of segregation and he did it in a way nobody else did. Jackie Robinson was born on the day of January 31, 1919 in Cairo, GA. He married Rachel Robinson and had three kids. He played for the Brooklyn Dodgers and ended getting “Rookie of the Year” award. He went through a lot of racism when he was playing and he still kept playing even though other people didn’t want him to. He said,”Baseball is like, Nobody wants to quit when he’s losing, Nobody wants you to quit when you’re ahead.” Jackie Robinson broke a lot of segregation laws when he was in his baseball team. He sadly died on October 24, 1972 due to a heart attack.
Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31st, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia. He was very athletic and got into UCLA to play sports. Jackie was the first student in school history to letter in four different sports:
Jackie Robinson is not just looked at as one of the greatest players to hold a bat, he is a racial icon to this earth. Without him and without Branch Rickey who knows where this world would be right now, who knows if we would still have the MLB and the negro leagues. No One knows, but all we do know is that we don't have all that now because of him, he changed the world. He went on to lead his team to the world series in 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953,1955, 1956 and on july 23rd 1952 he was elected into the baseball hall of