Jackie Robinson had a tough life growing up in Cairo, Georgia. He was born in the year 1919 and raised by his mother. He was very good at sports. He played baseball, basketball, football, and track at UCLA. Unfortunately he could not afford to pay for college and he had to dropout. He joined the army but received an honorable discharge because he was a victim of racial discrimination. He then joined the Negro Baseball League and played for the Kansas City Monarchs in 1945. Two years later, Robinson was asked if he would like to join the Brooklyn Dodgers. The Brooklyn Dodgers were in the major leagues. The year 1889 was the last time an African-American played in the major leagues. Robinson decided to join the Brooklyn Dodgers and ended up being the rookie of the year in his first year. Throughout his career, he was named the most value player in the national league and he hit 137 home runs. In 1962, Robinson made it into Baseball’s Hall of Fame.
http://www.jackierobinson.com/about/bio.html
It’s amazing to hear a story like that and not smile. Back then, accomplishing a goal like his was almost one in a million. Now, there are so many African-American baseball players that break all of the records! It’s neat to see how one people have progressively changed how society is today. With all of these great players in baseball, they make a great deal of money because so many people want to see them play. Now they have full teams of almost all colored, amazing athletes and have many young children looking up to them. T-shirts, logos, stadiums and sneakers have all been made and built around these amazing athletes. It’s very interesting to see how few people can absolutely change history.
ReplyDelete-Alisha Rickert
Good post. I think that Jackie Robinson had a big cultural impact in our society. By becoming the first African American athlete to achieve hall of fame status he helped break the prevailing racial barrier that existed in Major League baseball. Before he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers, baseball was segregated and Robinson played in the Negro Leagues. By becoming the first African American to play in the major league he definitely helped change the way society thinks. He showed that a athlete should be admired for their talent and ability and not discriminated against because of their skin color. His efforts made big contribution to the Civil Rights Movement and changed much of society’s views regarding segregation and race. He helped change our national pastime forever.
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