Jackie Robinson's Life

1098 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Racism and sports

“I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me…all I ask is that you respect me as a human being.”
These are the words of Jackie Robinson, the first black man to play baseball in the Major Leagues. Jackie Robinson changed the face of baseball. Back then, in 1947, blacks and whites didn’t have the same opportunities. Blacks weren’t as respected as whites were. National and American teams, like the Major Leagues, were segregated because people thought that blacks weren’t as talented or smart as whites were. Jackie Robinson proved all those people wrong and made history by greatly impacting the sport of baseball with both his mental and physical ability.
Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia. Jackie, being black, struggled with growing up in the South. His grandparents had been slaves and his parents worked as sharecroppers. Being a sharecropper means that they didn’t own the small piece of land they farmed. Because they were sharecroppers, money was scarce and there was never much money left over (Herman 6).
Jackie was the youngest of five children. Times got tougher when Jackie’s father walked out on his family. Jackie’s mother, Mallie, had to care for all five children and run the farm by herself. Mallie didn’t want her children growing up as feeling unequal, so she made the decision to move to California. Jackie was only sixteen months old when his family made the weeklong trip to California.

Mallie found work as a maid and bought a house in Pasadena in a white neighborhood. At first, the Robinsons’ neighbors weren’t happy when they moved in. They tried to make the Robinsons leave by shouting names at them and some even called the police when the children played in the street for bei...

... middle of paper ...

...te." Jackie Robinson - The Official Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. .

"Jackie Robinson." Baseball-Reference.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. .

"Jackie Robinson." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. .

"The Jackie Robinson Foundation." The Jackie Robinson Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. .

Robinson, Sharon. Promises to Keep: How Jackie Robinson Changed America. New York: Scholastic, 2004. Print.

Robinson, Sharon. Promises to Keep: How Jackie Robinson Changed America. New York: Scholastic, 2004. Print.

Swaine, Rick. "SABR." Jackie Robinson. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. .

Show More
Related

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Jackie Robinson's Letter To President Lyndon B. Johnson

    493 Words  | 1 Pages

    On April 18th, 1967, Jackie Robinson, the first African American professional baseball player, wrote a letter to President Lyndon B. Johnson thanking him for his role in the Civil Rights Act. Within the letter, Robinson uses logos and pathos to reassure the president he is doing a great job, and to persuade him not to give up despite the wartime demonstrations.

    Read More

  • Brief Summary Of Jackie Jackson's Life Story

    625 Words  | 2 Pages

    Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, 1919 in Georgia. On this day, a legend arrived. Jackie was raised by his mother, and his mother alone. His father left before Jackie was born, and he didn’t remember one thing about him. Jackie had many siblings, brothers and sisters. Jackie had an older brother named Matthew, who was also very athletic. Jackie’s mother tried the best she could to raise these boys right, and teach them that no matter what the whites called them...they were special.

    Read More

  • Symbols Of Jackie Jackson And Jackie Robinson Vs. Cassius Clay

    1875 Words  | 4 Pages

    Jonathon Eig wrote in his book, Opening Day, “It was unclear if black American were on the brink of great gains or terrible troubles, but they were clearly on the brink.” Jackie Robinson served as a symbol for Black Americans success and therefore inspired other African Americans to take their own risks and action in order to challenge the structure of separation between the races at the time. Robinson’s infectiously appealing personality and actions helped him to attract to both audiences of the white and black population. What makes Robinson so successful was the constant pressure he felt not to fail and disappoint, because he was the one who could change the ideas of while and blacks. Eig quotes Robinson on the great effort he was challenged with: “There were times when deep depression and speculation as to whether it was all worthwhile would seize me.” Robinson did succeed in his efforts on the field as well as off the field. He is considered one of the original “pushes” in the civil rights movement and his efforts went a long way to help. While he did face lots of disapproval and hate from as a result of the actions and words he did and said, Robinson was celebrated as the leader and part of the developer of integration. At the time of the movement, the Vietnam War, Jackie Robinson was a figure that appealed to

    Read More

  • Essay On Branch Ricky

    1008 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Legend Of Jackie Robinson's Major League Baseball

    1530 Words  | 4 Pages

    “In 1946, there were sixteen Major League Baseball teams, with a total of 400 players on their rosters, every one of the players was white. But when opening day came in 1947, that number dropped to 399, and one man stood apart. (42 2:30)” Jack Roosevelt “Jackie” Robinson made his Major League Baseball debut on April 15, 1947, as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Making Jackie Robinson the first African-American to play Major League Baseball (MLB). Jackie’s transition from the Negro Leagues to MLB was not an easy one. As a player, he transitioned very well, but it was Robinson’s teammates, Dodgers fans, the opposing teams and their fans that tested Jackie every chance they got, some hotels even prohibited the Dodgers to stay in their establishments

    Read More

  • Jackie And Me Essay

    742 Words  | 2 Pages

    People might say that Racism is a part of life in history and you have to deal with it, but it fails the support because back in the day, there was a thing called the middle passage and was very harmful. The middle passage was where people chained slaves to the bottom of a ship and barely fed them and they also went to the bathroom on themselves. The theme is racism is not acceptable and can cause a lot of issues between human beings. Jackie Robinson was a person who was humble and treated all humankind equally.

    Read More

  • Jackie Robinson and Civil Rights

    962 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Jackie Robinson Turning Point

    683 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Jackie Robinson's Impact on Baseball

    1572 Words  | 4 Pages

    Although Jackie Robinson was not the best African-American baseball player of his time, his attitude and ability to handle racist harassment led the way for the rest of his race to play Major League Baseball, amongst other sports. Being accepted into professional sports also helped African-Americans become more easily accepted into other aspects of life. Jackie's impact in the world for the black population is enormous.

    Read More

  • Racial Discrimination In The Movie 42 By Jackie Robinson

    1638 Words  | 4 Pages

    An African-American man who faced Racism and insult of White people. He was born in Cairo, Georgia. But, because his family were African American, he faced poverty, which cause him to live hard time, during childhood. In 1920, Robinson’s family decided to moveto Pasadena, California. When he went to school, Jackie got a lots of scout by a school coach. In high school, Jackie mastered most of the sports, like baseball, football.etc. After his graduation of his high school, Jackie went college in Pasadena. Two years later, he went to the UCLA. But because of his skin color, professional team didn’t scout him on their team. Also, lots of sports teams were segregated during 1930-1940. In 1941, he left the UCLA and help his mother. However, Jackie has to join army for WWII. After he came back in early 1945, Kansas City Monarchs scouted him, and decided to play baseball as his career. But, Because he didn’t play as professional Baseball player, He had to get use to play. However, Jackie already had all the necessary abilities for baseball. During the season, Boston Redsoxs proposed a contract with him. However, Because of the racism action by white people, the deal failed. Lots of sports teams also tried to transfer African American player to Major league. However he decided transfer to Los angeles Dodgers. During the game(in Dodgers), he had lots of insult by other players. However, he endures the

    Read More

  • Essay On Jackie Robinson

    668 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ame the vice-president for the Chock Full O' Nuts Corporation. He also served on the board of the NAACP. He created the Jackie Robinson Construction Company to build affordable housing for black families that did not have enough money. In the 1970s Jackie Robinson's heath got bad. On Oct. 15, 1972, he attended a World Series game in Cincinnati that celebrated the 25th anniversary of his breaking the color barrier in professional baseball. During pre-game ceremonies he said how he wanted to have a black manager to be hired for a team in major league baseball. Ten days later after the World Series game, Jackie Robinson died of a heart attack at his home in Stamford, Connecticut. Jackie will be remembered for his courage, determination, persistence, integrity, citizenship, justice, commitment, and his excellence. He is an inspiration for many people that have a dream.

    Read More

  • Jackie Robinson and the Civil Rights Movement

    1244 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ducket, Alfred. I Never Had It Made: An Autobiography of Jackie Robinson. Hopewell, NJ: The Ecco Press. 1995

    Read More

  • Essay On Jackie Robinson

    1236 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

    2179 Words  | 5 Pages

    ...u're going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you're wasting your life." "I don't think that I or any other Negro, as an American citizen, should have to ask for anything that is rightfully his. We are demanding that we just be given the things that are rightfully ours and we're not looking for anything else." In 1972 Jackie Robinson died but his legacy would always live forever. The effects of Robinson can be seen in any place that you come across like the covers of Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and even the Wall Street Journal. Since Jackie Robinson integrated baseball in 1947 black society in America has truly broken infinite number of barriers. More important than the improvements in the black race, are the improvements in the entire nation that from his accomplishments was now one step closer to equality. (Quotes)

    Read More

  • African American Athlete: Their Role in American Culture

    3732 Words  | 8 Pages

    Dorinson, Joseph, and Joram Warmund. 1998. Jackie Robinson :Race, Sports, and The American Dream. Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe.

    Read More

More about Jackie Robinson's Life

Open Document