Summary Of Jackie Robinson: Breaking The Baseball Color Barrier

Jackie Robinson: Breaking The Baseball Color Barrier

When Jackie Robison took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947 it not only changed his life but changed Major League Baseball forever. Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born in Cario, Georgia on January 31, 1919 to a family of four children and a single mother. He grew up as a stellar athlete excelling in four different sports: baseball, basketball, track, and football. In 1938 he was named the region's most valuable player for baseball. He attended University of California, Los Angeles where he became the schools first athlete to win varsity letters in four different sports. In 1941 he was forced to leave UCLA due to financial issues. He then was in the military from 1942-1944

Because of his reputation newspapers and the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) shed light on this injustice and ultimately all charges were dropped and he received honorable discharge. This was only the beginning of his huge impact on segregation. After his discharge from the Army in 1944, Jackie began to play baseball professionally. At the time, the sport was segregated, and had two different leagues . Jackie began playing in the Negro Leagues, but was quickly chosen by the president of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Branch Rickey. Rickey's plan was to help combine both the Negro League and Major League Baseball by bringing African Americans into the league starting with Jackie. In 1946 he joined the Montreal Royals a farm team affiliated with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He later

Rickey even tested Robinson's reactions to insults and remarks he knew Jackie would hear. The troubles started right from the beginning of his career with the Dodgers. His own teammates even started a petition because they did not want an African American on their team. That was quickly stopped by the teams manager but that was nothing compared to the racist actions by fans and even other teams. He even received threats to harm him and also his family. Despite the abuse Jackie went on the lead the farm league in batting average and fielding percentage, finally earning him a well deserved spot on the Brooklyn Dodgers. Robinson played his first game at Ebbets Field for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. Thus day changed history as he became the first African American to play Major League Baseball. The racial harassment did not stop though. Other teams and coaches began to try to make fun of Jackie and get in his head. Many players on opposing teams threatened not to play against the Dodgers and even some of his own teammates claimed they would sit out also. That was stopped when they were informed they would all be traded before they would trade Robinson. Many defended his right to play in the major leagues, including League President Ford Frick,