What Challenges Did Jackie Robinson Face

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

Robinson was took a huge risk taking part in this, but it was worth it. He helped the Dodgers win the World Series and after the game a huge mob chased Jackie for three blocks and Sam Maltin a reporter from the Pittsburg Courier stated “It was probably the only day in history that a black man ran from a white mob with love instead of hate on its mind” (Swaine, 2006). It took years until the Major Leagues opened up to more African Americans, but when it did they had a lot of love for Jackie. Joe Black a former teammate expressed his gratitude by saying “When I look at my house. I say thank God for Jackie Robinson” (Singer, 2016).

“Spring training in Florida was rough for Robinson due to segregation laws” (“Jackie” 2). This quote shows the MLB was segregated and Jackie did not care. “ Robinson’s arrival on the major league scene in 1947 prompted slew racially motivated actions” (“Jackie” 2). This quote shows that people were going to hate Jackie and he knew that people would.“ The St. Louis Cardinals threatened to go on strike” (“Jackie” 2). This quote shows teams were not going to play with Jackie in the league because they did not want him to play baseball. “ National League president Ford Frick threatened to ban all strikers from professional baseball” (“Jackie” 2). This quote shows that Ford Frick is willing to stand up for Jackie and people care about Jackie playing baseball. “ Pitchers often threw the ball directly at Jackie, baserunners tried to spike him” (“Jackie” 2). This quote shows that other pitchers and runners hated Jackie and tried to get him out of baseball. “In his first year, Jackie hit 12 home runs and helped the Dodgers win the National League pennant” (“Robinson” 3). This quote shows that Jackie would be a key part for the Dodgers. “That year, Robinson lead the National League in stolen bases and was selected Rookie of the Year” (“Robinson” 3). This shows that Jackie would be a star in the MLB. Next will be breaking the color

Jackie Robinson was the first African American to play in the MLB. Back then many people's point of view about African Americans was that they had some things, but the things should be worse than what the things white people had, and because of that he was proud yet uneasy because he would get a lot of hate for playing, and he did. The thing is he didn’t only get hate, but he also got threats against him and his family to physically harm him,“The hate mail piled up. There were threats against me and my family and even out-and-out attempts at physical harm to me.” Being in the MLB was hard and he could’ve given up, but he didn’t. Jackie Robinson stayed strong and he changed our point of view about African Americans not doing things that only white people could do and he helped our country change for the better

Jackie Robinson’s life changed when he became the first black man to play in the World Series and Major League Baseball during a time of segregation in America. These life-changing events challenged him because he had to face racially tense crowds and endured threats from teammates, opponents, and bigoted fans. In paragraph three, Robinson states, “There were threats against me and my family and even out-and-out attempts at physical harm to me. This quote explains that Jackie Robinson was facing racist people who were threatening him. Despite the racism he faced, Robinson learned to have pride in his accomplishments and appreciate the support courage, and love shown by his supporters. In paragraph eleven, Robinson states,”I don’t think i’ll ever forget the small, shrill voice of a tiny white kid who, in the midst of a racially tense atmosphere during an early game in a Dixie town, cried out “Attaboy Jackie”.” This quote explains how Robinson had pride in himself after a tiny white kid motivated him by encouraging him that he was a really good baseball player. Robinson responded to the life-changing events by not giving up when he was getting hate and racism. In paragraph three, it states, “Within the club, Mr. Rickey had put down rebellion that by letting my teammates know that anyone who didn’t want to be

Robinson later moved to Florida to practice his spring training with the Royals. This is where he became the first black player to ever play in a major league baseball game. Even though Rickey knew times would get hard for Jackie, he made Jackie promise to never fight back when the racism started to hit him. Robinson’s reactions to the racism were also tested by Rickey at the beginning of his career. Some of Robinson’s team mates didn’t agree with him being on their team. Jackie and his parents were threatened by people in the crowds.

Born on January 31, 1919 Jack Roosevelt Robinson was the youngest of five children. His father left the family before Jackie turned one and shortly after his mom moved the family from Georgia to California in search of work (Contemporary Black Biography). Segregation was still present in California, but was less harsh than in the south. To get away from the problems and racial prejudice, Jackie turned to sports. He was an exceptional athlete excelling in football, baseball, basketball, and track in both high school and college. He played four sports for the University of California Los Angeles (commonly known as UCLA). He was mostly a football and basketball star and had no intentions of playing Major League baseball due to the fact that it was all white. Jackie had always wanted to become a social worker to help underprivileged boys and hoped that travelling the nation for sports would expose him to a job in that field

Robinson certainly faced many different challenges. For example, they did not allow Robinson to stay at white hotels when they had over night games, which left him to be alone most nights. One reporter stated, “Robinson is the loneliest man I have ever seen in sports” (Brown 3). Additionally, many coaches, players, and fans abused Robinson. They did so by name calling at games, sending death threats, and intentionally hitting him with pitches (Graf 2). Opposing teams would always pick at Robinson by saying, “Hey, boy, come and shine my shoes,” or “Boy, why ain’t you picking cotton” (Brown 1, 2). “Robinson was proud and tough.” Despite all the negative activity, Robinson stayed composed and never let himself or his community down. “Proud and tough” was how Robinson became known. Nothing was going to stop him from proving he

With the same idea as Martin Luther King Jr., he worked hard to stay non-violent and to “turn the cheek” to the many threats and racial slurs he received throughout his time in the Major League. He was the target of many cold-hearted fans, and even some of the players on his own team. He was already born a leader, but these things fueled his fire even more. 5 years after he began playing in the MLB, he testified against discrimination before the House of Un-American Activities Committee and called out the Yankees for not yet breaking the color barrier. Along with that, he also served as a leader on the board of the NAACP until 1967.(www.NAACP.org) There, he made speeches that inspired people to get on board and to fight for their rights and for changes. He said, “Certainly if such revolutionary change can be brought about in baseball, it can be brought about in education, in transportation, and in any other area of American life. (Robinson) He believed that change was just around the corner, and all it needed was a little push. Jackie was a firm believer in his ideas and that is why he is such an important figure in our

The grandson of a slave, Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, in Cairo, Georgia; he was the youngest of five children. Jackie grew up very poor, but little did he know that his athletic ability would open the doors for his future. After his father deserted the family when Jackie was six months old, his mother, Mallie Robinson, moved the family to California in search of work. California also subjected blacks to segregation at that time, but to less of a degree than in the Deep South. The young Jackie defused his anger over this prejudice by immersing himself in sports. He displayed extraordinary athletic skills in high school, excelling at football, basketball, baseball, and track. After helping Pasadena Junior College

Jackie Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31st 1919. In 1947, at the age of 28, Jackie became the first African American to break the “color line” of Major League Baseball when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers. During his tenure with the Dodgers, Jackie was not simply an average player. Among various other accolades, Mr. Robinson was a starter on six World Series teams as well as being named the National League Rookie of The Year in 1947. His advantageous career was then capped in 1962 when he was inducted in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.1 Contrary to popular belief, Jackie's perseverance in implementing racial integration extended beyond his career in Major League Baseball. During the Sixties Jackie Robinson was a

As Rickey told Jackie what he was looking for in a black ballplayer that was strong enough not to fight back against the abuse and discrimination. Jackie signed the contract on October 23, 1945, and was sent to the Brooklyn Dodgers minor league team, the Montreal Royals.(Rampersad, 135). When Robinson and the Royals arrived to Florida for spring training, Jackie got a taste of racism. Jackie was not allowed to sleep at the hotel where his fellow teammates were because of the racial segregating, Jim Crow laws.(Harnischfeger, Corey). Robinson was feeling the pressure of racial discrimination but with the help of Rachel he continued to pursue to the MLB. On April 18th, 1946, Robinson made his long awaited minor league debut. He ended up complying 4 hit out of 5 at bats with one homerun. At the end of the season, Jackie won the most valuable player award. (Rampersad, 136-155). Before the start of the 1947 season, Robinson was called up to the MLB’s Brooklyn Dodgers. Then On April 15, 1947, Robinson broke baseball's color barrier in front of 26 thousand plus people, with many of the attendees being African Americans. Jackie Robinson being called up to the MLB brought some racial tension. Jackie was the subject of death threats from fans and even players, including some teammates, not wanting to play on the same field as him.(Tygiel, 125). When some of Jackie’s

Robinson didn't really understand why Rickey wanted to sign him and not Gibson, who is considered by many as the greatest power hitter of all time. Rickey managed to sell Robinson on the idea, after Jackie didn't act to interested. Robinson finally signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers, and then all hell broke lose. The instant it hit the paper, mail poured into Robinson, most of it death threats. "You gonna die n*****, you step foot on that field", "we can hang you to", and "you won't make it off the bus you sorry n*****." (Tygiel 212). Robinson's main concern was his teammates and how they

Jackie believed that God had plans for him that were beyond what anyone would have thought. In 1942 more than ten years before the famous Rosa Parks incident happened, Jackie was involved in a similar conflict. He was told by an officer to leave his seat on the white section of the bus and move to the back of the bus but Jackie refused. The scene quickly escalated but Jackie stood still and refused to answer to the officer. This resulted in a court trial for Robinson, who was facing "dishonorable discharge." He fought in court and proved that what happened was a violation against the segregation code of the army and won this case. This led for him to leave the army without this incident on his record. His way of acting against racism was a strong part of his personality, a part that people will see never die. He used his talent which is his amazing athletic ability to reach the pinnacle of where he was trying to be. When it came to sports it did not take long to realize that Jackie was extremely gifted. In College at UCLA Jackie excelled in sports more than anyone else. (SABR)

Jackie was a phenomenal athlete for young kids to look up to. After the start of World War II he served in the military from 1942 to 1944. After the war he returned to his love for baseball, playing in the Black major leagues. He was chosen by Branch Rickey, vice president of the Brooklyn dodgers, to help integrate the Major Leagues. Rickey hated segregation just as much as Robinson and wanted to change things “Rickey had once seen a Black college player turned away from a hotel… Rickey never forgot seeing this player crying because he was denied a place to lay his weary head just because of the color of his skin” (Mackenzie). He was finally able to do something about segregation and help change baseball and the United States for the better. It wasn’t that all the teams were racist and didn’t want a black player but when the major league teams had an away game they would rent out the stadium to the black teams for them to play at. And the executives of teams didn’t want to loose the money that they were making off of the black teams. “League owners would lose significant rental revenue” (“Breaking”). He soon signed with the all-white Montreal Royals a farm team for the Dodgers. Robinson had an outstanding start with the Royals, “leading the International League with a .349 batting average and .985 fielding percentage” (Robinson). After Robinson’s outstanding year he was promoted to the Dodgers he played his first game on