Jackie Robinson Choices Essay

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

One of the challenges that Jackie faced was receiving hate mail. “The hate mail piled up” (Robinson). Another challenge that Robinson faced was physical and verbal threats upon his life. “There were threats against me and my family, and even out-and-out attempts at physical harm to me” (Robinson). This demonstrates some of the challenges that Jackie faced as the first black professional baseball player of his time. Jackie Robinson responded to these events by working hard to be the best baseball player he could possibly be. He did this so that people would look past his race. Jackie grew and developed by ignoring the negativity and focused on the positive things that were happening in his life. Jackie also learned to appreciate the people around him who supported him during these difficult times. Jackie impacted his society/country by paving the way for other black athletes to play in professional sports. “Suppressed and repressed for so many years, they needed a victorious black man as a symbol” (Robinson). This concludes evidence of  how difficult it was for Jackie Robinson to become the first black professional baseball

Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born January 31, 1919. He was born in Cairo, Georgia and was the youngest of five children. He had a grandfather that was a slave, Jackie’s dad was a sharecropper and Mallie, Jackie’s mother, was a maid. His dad ran away from the family when Jackie was only an infant.

“Jackie Robinson was born on the thirty first day of January in 1919”. (biography.com) He was born to a family of sharecroppers in the town of Cairo Georgia, but Jackie grew up in Pasadena California. (Jackie Robinson official website) Jackie grew up being raised by only his mother and his older siblings helped out as well. He had four siblings, three older brothers and one sister. (Britannica encyclopedia) Jackie was the youngest of five kids and they all helped out each other in school, sports, and chores. The Robinson family was the only African American family on their block, but the bias acts of the white people surrounding them didn’t hurt them, but prepared them for their future. (Jackie Robinson official website) Jackie’s older brother Matthew gave him his inspiration to take on sports just as he did. He has always had a huge love for sports in his childhood years. (Jackie Robinson book pg: 4)

“Robinson faced death threats, vulgar insults, and hate-filled fans”(Jackie Robinson para 3). It’s because he was the first African-American baseball player in major league baseball and nobody liked him because of that. Jackie Robinson was a brave, hardworking men that accomplished a lot in his life for baseball and African-American community. Jackie Robinson had a positive influence on African Americans because he was the first African-American baseball player in major league baseball, he was a founder of ways to help African-American and he was a civil rights advocate for African-Americans.

“I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me… all I ask is that you respect me as a human being.” This is a very true statement that Jackie Robinson said. The first man to challenge the color barrier in Major League Baseball, Jackie Robinson’s upbringing led to him being one of the most well-known baseball players in history. Despite adversities, he fought for what was right.

After he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers he faced threats from fans, teammates, and other people making fun of him. In paragraph 3 the text states, “It hadn’t been that easy to fight the resentment expressed by players on other teams, by team owners, and by bigoted fans screaming “n----” (Robinson). This shows that even though he was disliked by other players, team owners, and by fans he continued playing. Even though Jackie faced great difficulties, he continued playing baseball. Despite facing many great obstacles, he never gave up.

One way Jackie Robinson showed commitment and excellence was when he played well despite the death threats, and taunts on and off the field. For example In “Hero” Scott Simon says “It was on the ground on which he was most vulnerable to taunt, threats, and sharpened spikes” (Simon) This quote shows that Jackie Robinson had to face a lot of struggles and bad things that not other normal human beings would face, but still in the heart of this he was able to be a spectacular baseball player. To be a great civil rights advocate you need to be able to succeed through the toughest of times.

Imagine being so passionate about one thing that you are willing to face criticism and hate to do it. This was the case for Jackie Robinson, both a baseball player and a civil rights icon. Robinson was the first African American baseball player to play in an all white league (in the 20th century). He was often faced with hate and had to listen to people's cruel remarks. He also had his fair share of supporters, who admired him for breaking racial barriers in the United States. He was the start of a new area for the baseball leagues of America. “Hero” by Scott Simon, “Excerpt from How Jackie Robinson Changed Baseball” by Jessica McBirney, and “Jackie Robinson – Mini Bio” by A&E Networks, do a fantastic job of illustrating how Robinson's baseball

Jackie Robinson brought baseball fans of all races together and it improved race relations because even though their was still hatred, white people were getting eased into racial integration since Jackie Robinson was laying the foundations of civil rights. Robinson was loved by many and hated by plenty, every game he played he packed the stands whether it be fans who are cheering for him or booing him. According to the biography by Wilson “Many fans came out to cheer Robinson, and a lot came out to boo him but both groups bought tickets” (75). He performed so well on the baseball field that the fans would lose sight of his color, and the stands were predominantly white so he was doing so well with a very unsupportive fan base. In the biography

Everyday life for him was having to stay at different hotels, or eat at different restaurants than his teammates. These things put his family at risk, whether it be receiving harsh language, or finding an equitable place to sleep. He knew these segregating laws were not fair, and the risks of safety were high, and still put up with the harsh treatments to prove his point of equality. Despite these things, he knew what he was doing would eventually lead to the full integration of sports. When the manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers gave Robinson the chance to break the unwritten color barrier, he gladly accepted. He would have given anything to show that a black man was just as competent as a white. And he did. In 1981, his wish came true with an estimated 19% of Major League baseball players being African American, a startling change from the previous years.(mlblogs.com) Now, nearly 70 years later, all sports are integrated without a thought to color or race. This accomplishment made a huge difference to the black members of society and to our history in general. Jackie Robinson got his wish, even though he didn't live long enough to see it happen all the way through. Because of him, black players now have an equal opportunity to play and take part in the sports they

Jackie Robinson had to deal with overwhelming racism. He handled the racist slurs thrown at him by being gentlemen and playing ball. Robinson risked his life being black in an all-white baseball league. He had it fine in California, but decided to risk his life to show the world what he could do. He became a role model for others like him to be somebody.

Throughout his professional career, Jackie Robinson, received criticism for being the first “black” player to play the game. Not only did Jackie Robinson manage to live up to the criticism, he also changed the face of America’s greatest past time forever. With his entrance into the MLB he opened the path for great black players like Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Willie Mays, and Ozzie Smith just to name a few. In crossing the color-barrier in baseball Robinson not only strived as a great player on the field, but also a inspiration to the black community of the field with his humility, and willingness to move forward in a time where blacks were not considered “equal”.

Jackie Robinson grew up in a single parent household after his dad left him at only one year old in 1920 in Cairo, Georgia where his family lived on a share plot and gained there menial income that way (Rampersad, 2019-2020). Jackie’s difficulties included his poverty, racial identity in a segregated nation, and the hatred that he witnessed in the world of sports because of the color of his skin. In the 1950’s, the demographic of the US was approximately 10% Black oppose to 89% white per the census bureau (Census, n.d.). Jackie was an African-American, Methodist, poverty stricken, single parent raised, nearly blind man with diabetes living in the 1900’s. Opposite to him, I was raised by two parents, I am a Caucasian, born in the middle class,

Jackie Robinson was chosen to integrate the major leagues during a time in history when blacks were not a part of the major leagues. On his path to become the first black player in the major leagues, he had to endure racism expressed by insults, physical harm, and pressure from his own teammates, other baseball owners, and fans. In paragraph two, Robinson states, “I was proud to be in a hurricane eye of a significant breakthrough “. This quote is explaining that Robinson was in a life changing by helping prove that black people should play baseball if it is a sport that is called national.Despite the racism he faced, he grew and developed through the support,encouragement, and love shown to him by his supporters,and the children and the black fans. Robinson responded to these life changing events by counting not to react to his