There were many men and women who stepped up during the Civil Rights Movement, but there was one man in particular that really took a stand in the world of sports. Jackie Robinson was mostly known for breaking the color barrier not only in Professional Baseball, but in all sports. He was one of the only men who took a stand for what he believed in.
On January 31, 1919 Jackie Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia (Robinson 3) to Mallie and Jerry Robinson ten years after they were married (Robinson 3). Robinsons grandfather was born into slave trade (Robinson 3).When he was six months old Jackie’s father left him and his mother and ran away with the neighbors wife, later Jackie would say” My mother was …show more content…
In college Ray Bartlett was Jackie’s best friend who introduced him to his future girlfriend Rachel Isum.(Robinson 10). Jackie’s baseball carrer started out in Montreal when he played for a AAA team which is a semi pro team. (Robinson 53). Jackie was signed to the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947 by Branch Rickey (the Dodgers owner).(Robinson 29) In 1949 Jackie won the National Leauge MVP in 1949. (Robinson 48) Jackie played two thirds of the games in 1955. (Robinson 78).
Jackie retired in October of 1956 he was a six time all-star, one time world series champion, one time N.L. MVP,and the 1947 rookie of the year. He became the first African-American inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. in 1962. (“Jackie Robinson” 1). In 1971 Jackie’s son died. (Robinson 220). One year later Jackie died due to complications of diabetes. (“Jackie Robinson 1”).
Jackie Robinson was one of the only men who took a stand for what he believed in. Jackie once said “I was a black man living in a white world. I never had it made.” (Robinson 275) Jackie was a man who changed the sports world. He was a man who not only broke a barrier, he broke the color