Jack Roosevelt Robinson was a good sensitive and intelligent man. He was an African American who tried to get though life. In his lifetime he went through many obstacles. But through them all he would keep strong.
Jackie Robinson was born on January 31,1919. He was the youngest of five children. He was also grandson of a slave. He always hoped his life would be better then that, but it wasn’t. At the age of five his father Jerry Robinson left home. And his mother Millie Robinson moved the family to California. His family was being supported by welfare because their father wasn’t around to help.
They moved into a home with white neighbors who petitioned to have them relocated, but this attempt failed. Jackie was a fair student and had to work several part time jobs. For a while he was involved in several crimes and robberies with the pepper street gang. This didn t last long because he received “big brotherly” care from Carl Anderson, a local mechanic and Reverend Karl Downs. Both men were able to point him in a more positive direction. They had him focus more on athletics.
After Pasadena Junior College Jackie got a scholarship to the University of California at UCLA. Jackie’s true passion was playing sports. He excelled in every sport he played. His favorites were football, track, baseball and basketball, which earned him a scholarship. Jackie was the first student to play on four varsity teams. At UCLA in 1940 he met his future wife Rachel Isum. He did not complete his senior year at UCLA. Instead at age of 21 he joined NYA (national Youth Administration.) where he played baseball to entertain campers and worked with children. He also earned extra money by playing for a semi-pro football team, known as the Honolulu Bears.
In 1941 Robinson joined the United States Army. After graduating from Officers Candidate School, Robinson became a second lieutenant in what was then segregated army. Troubled by the mistreatment of black soldiers in his unit, Robinson protested the U.S. Army’s discriminatory practices. Military police at Fort Hood arrested Robinson when he refused the driver’s order to move to the back of the bus. A court martial acquitted Jackie and he received an honorable discharge in 1944 with the rank of his first lieutenant.
Jackie began his professional baseball career in 1945 with the Kansas City Monarchs, one of the leading teams of the Negro leagues. Later that year he signed with Branch Rickey the general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers. He spent the 1946 season playing for the Montreal Royals of the International League. Á minor league affiliated of the Dodgers.
After one season with the Royals, Robinson was called up to the Brooklyn team in 1947, becoming the first black to play major league baseball in the 20th century. Starting at first base he made his debut in a Brooklyn uniform on April 5,1947. Some of his teammates didn’t like the idea of a black man on their team, so they threatened to leave. But the manager refused to fire Robinson. Other players refused to shake hands after the game with him. The St. Louis Cardinals almost boycotted because they didn t want to play with a black man.
Breaking baseball’s color barrier was a serious challenge. Robinson met fierce resistance from many players and fans who believed in the separation of people on the basis of race. Branch Rickey warned Jackie not to retaliate or acknowledge taunts; Robinson endured malicious catcalls and racial slurs shouted from the stands. He also received unsigned notes threatening death if he continued to play baseball. Some rival players went beyond verbal abuse in an effort to intimidate him. They threw pitches at Jackie’s head, spat on him when he slid into a base, and attempted to injure him with the spikes on their shoes.
With the support of Branch Ricky and the encouragement of teammates the determined Robinson survived these attacks and helped the Dodgers win the National League Pennant in 1947. During the season he led the NL with 29 stolen bases. Sports writers named the courageous and talented Robinson Rookie of the Year in the Major Leagues. In 1947, 1950, and 1951 he led in fielding percentages. In 1949 he was given most voluble player award. His batting average was .311.
His biggest contribution was opening the major leagues for other black players after him. But not until 1959 did all 16, major league clubs field at least one black player. Robinson’s last season was in 1956. He finished with a batting average .311 and hit 137 homeruns he was also an excellent base stealer, with a career total of 196. He retired from professional baseball after this season rather than faces a trade to another club.
Reverend Karl Downs married Jackie to Rachel in 1956 in Los Angeles. They had a son named Jackie Robinson Jr. Later in Jackie Jr.’s life he had a drug addiction. A few years after Jackie Sr. retired Jackie Jr. died in an auto accident. Robinson was inducted to the Nation Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962, the first black to receive the honor. Robinson wanted to become the first black to manage a major league team but no club offered him the opportunity.
After leaving baseball, Robinson became Vice President of a restaurant chain in NYC. He also promoted black business enterprises in New York’s Harlem Neighborhood and became a leading advocate for civil rights. From 1964-1968 he served as special assistant for civil rights to govern Nelson Rockefeller of New York. Robinson starred in the motion picture Jackie Robinson Story (1950) and was the author with Alfred Puckett of “I never had it made” (1972). He died of a heart attack. The epitaph that appears on Robinson’s grave stone is one that he wrote for himself. It says, “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”
On April 15, which was the day that Jackie played in his first ML game, the Dodgers and Mets played a regular season game honoring Jackie Robinson. In that game it was said that every team in baseball would no longer be issued the number 42. On that day is his number 42 was retired.
Robinson will always be remembered for all that he did for black Americans. He went through many obstacles but he got through it all. He achieved his dream plus much more. Today many black Americans thank Jackie Robinson for doing what he did to show that black Americans are just as good and equal to white Americans.
