What would you feel like to be the first modern African American to play major league baseball? Well, you don’t because this courageous man named John(Jackie) Robinson took over that role.
On January 31, 1919, a kid by the name of Jackie Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia. He surely did not know that he would be one day an american hero. His father was Jerry Robinson, a plantation worker. His mother was Mallie, she was a domestic worker. Jackie had three brothers and one sister. The four brothers were: Edgar, Frank and Mack. The sister was Willa Mae. Frank and Edgar are no longer alive, but Mack and WIlla still live in Pasadena, California. His dad left Mallie and the children, never to return, when Jackie was six months old. When Jackie was a little over a year old, he and his family left for Pasadena, California. Segregation was a big part of Jackie’s childhood. The movies were segregated, blacks could swim in the municipal pool and attend the YMCA on certain days of the week. Some restaurants were closed to blacks too. Carl Anderson and Karl Downs, Carl a mechanic, Karl a youthful minister, pointed Jackie to the right things and introduced him into sports. Jackie was also encouraged by his mother, so Jackie turned more of his energies to the fields. (True Story)
“Robinson’s very first competitive game took place when his fourth grade soccer team played the sixth grade soccer players. Then came football, basketball, tennis, the track team, and table tennis. In athletics he was to relate to people on equal terms. There was a lot of emphasis on race but on more body development, coordination, and performance level. He had a great skill as a football quarterback, .400 baseball batting average, and exceptional track athlete”...
... middle of paper ...
...n, and everything in between to get to where he was at. He will always be remembered for being the first African American to play modern major league ball but also his courage, his determination, and his character.
The official website of Jackie Robinson. 14 Apr. 2011
Jackie Robinson Bibliography. Bio. True Story. 19 Apr. 2011
Jackie Robinson. News Break. 8 Apr. 2011
O’Malley, Walter. Walter O’Malley: Official Website. 2003 Walter O’Malley biographies. 8 Apr. 2011
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia. Infoplease. 2007. The Columbia University Press. 14 Apr. 2011
Need Writing Help?
Get feedback on grammar, clarity, concision and logic instantly.Check your paper »
- Jackie Robinson played an important role in helping break the color barrier for all African Americans who had a dream to play major league baseball. Segregation was very high in the mid-1900s and there were separate areas for African Americans to eat, drink, and even use the bathroom. There was a separate baseball league that blacks had to play in and there were absolutely NO blacks in Major League Baseball. That all changed in 1947 when Jackie Robinson was signed to a contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers.... [tags: notorious African Americans in sports]
927 words (2.6 pages)
- Background & Introduction The Major League Baseball debut of Jackie Robinson, was one of the most historical moments to occur in American sports. He became the first African American player to play in MLB in the modern era, breaking the color barrier in baseball. In making his MLB debut on first base with the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947, it caused quite a controversy all over the country because racism was a prominent issue during this time and the backlash Robinson faced was severe. Robinson, whose grandfather was a slave, had an extraordinary 10 year Major League career.... [tags: Major League Baseball, Jackie Robinson]
969 words (2.8 pages)
- Jackie Robinson: The Man Who Changed Professional Sports The date is April 15, 1947, it is a cool spring day in Brooklyn, New York. Thousands and thousands of people pile into ‘Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, where they will be watching a baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Boston Braves. People in the stands thought it would be just another game for the Brooklyn Dodgers, but this one was different. History would be made on this day, made by one brave, courageous man. That man is Jackie Robinson.... [tags: Jackie Robinson, Major League Baseball]
1017 words (2.9 pages)
- For much of the 20th century, African-American citizens had been disenfranchised throughout the South and the entire United States, they were regarded as inferior second-class citizens. Despite efforts to integrate society, the political and economic systems were meant to continue the cycle of oppression against African-Americans, throughout the south and indirectly yet ever present in the north. These laws of segregation, otherwise knows as Jim Crow laws, applied to almost every aspect of southern American society, including sports.... [tags: Major League Baseball, Jackie Robinson, Baseball]
1236 words (3.5 pages)
- Jackie kept his composure in the nation’s spotlight. Once 1947 came around, Jackie Robinson was officially a Brooklyn Dodger. Some players did not adapt well to the idea of a Negro baseball player on their team and even signed petitions to either get him off the team or to demand to be traded. Burt Shotton, manager of the dodgers at the time, called a meeting and told the players if they did not want to cooperate they were not going to be traded but dropped from the team which in turn ended the protest.... [tags: Jackie Robinson, Major League Baseball]
1073 words (3.1 pages)
- Jackie Robinson Story: An American Hero The Jackie Robinson story included, racism and Segregation against people of color playing baseball or any sport. The main characters were "Branch Rickey, Rachel, Jerry and Mallie Robinson, Edgar Robinson, Frank Robinson, Mack Robinson, Willa Mae Robinson, and Jack Roosevelt Robinson", also known as Jackie Robinson. Jackie, the youngest of four brothers and one sister. Together, they were parented by Jerry and Mallie Robinson.... [tags: Major League Baseball, Jackie Robinson]
959 words (2.7 pages)
- magine every time you go out to play you get made fun of and spit on or you hear the phrase “Nigger you don’t belong here!” You can 't go anywhere without this happening, these are the types of things Jackie Had to experience. Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, in Grady County, Georgia. Jackie Robinson is sought out to be one of the most influential leaders and athletes of his time and arguably the world and he is the first African American to play in professional baseball, the MLB.... [tags: Jackie Robinson, Major League Baseball, Baseball]
1351 words (3.9 pages)
- From the film “42” Jackie Robinson, African American man faced a lot of racial discrimination during the play, however he endures it and become a famous star. These are the actors/actress and Director; Jackie Robinson - Chadwick Boseman, Branch Rickey - Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie - Rachel Robinson, Harold Parrott - T.R Knight, Ryan Merriman - Dixie Walker, etc, Directed by Brian Helgeland. These actors/actress and Director helped viewer to understand the feeling of Jackie Robinson and other African American’s feelings.... [tags: Jackie Robinson, Major League Baseball, Baseball]
1638 words (4.7 pages)
- In the early 1900s, slavery still shaped the South, especially in Georgia. African Americans faced micro-aggressions, including the Jim Crow Laws that separated Blacks and Whites in the United States. In a country where liberty, freedom, and equality has been put into place, when in fact blacks still demanded these rights after the 14th and 15th amendment was added on to the constitution. Additionally, those amendments were added in the late 1800s, which the 14th amendment stated: “All person born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of wherein the reside…” (Robinson 24), so the system of democracy has proven that... [tags: Jackie Robinson, Major League Baseball]
1681 words (4.8 pages)
- Back Back Back Back Back and GONE. This is what people heard many times when Jackie Robinson was up to bat whether they liked it or not. Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in the MLB in 1947 which changed the game of baseball forever (America’s). Jackie Robinson faced many hardships such as fans treating him harshly saying folderol while playing on the field, players treating him bad, and not having anywhere to sleep even though he was very athletic even at a very young age. Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, 1919.... [tags: Jackie Robinson Essay]
830 words (2.4 pages)