“I'm not concerned with your liking or disliking me... All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.” In the 40’s, an African American playing in the MLB seemed ridiculous to many baseball fans, including the players. Jackie Robinson lived through the hatred and discrimination throughout his time in the MLB, but demanded you respect him not for the color of his skin but as a human, and for being for being just as good as any of the other players. Jackie Robinson was an important and influential figure in history that had a positive impact on the world because he showed that it didn’t matter the color of your skin, or where you came from. He showed that, in this case in sports, if you are good or talented, you deserve to be where the rest of the world is. Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia to sharecropper parents, Mallie McGriff and Jerry Robinson. He was the youngest of 5 children. After his father left in 1920, his family relocated to Pasadena, California. Robinson’s mother worked several jobs to support her family. Growing up in a community with relative poverty, Robinson and his friends were excluded from recreational activities/opportunities. Because of this, Robinson joined a neighborhood gang, but was later convinced by friend Carl Anderson to leave the gang. …show more content…
At this high school, Robinson recognized his athletic talents and decided to join sports. He played football, basketball, track, and baseball throughout his time at Muir Tech. After Robinson graduated from John Muir High School, he attended Pasadena Junior College where he continued playing sports. After his brother, Frank, died in a motorcycle accident, Robinson decided to continue to pursue his sports career at The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), in addition to be close to his brothers