Blog Post #6: 5 Reasons...

Five Reasons Why Jackie Robinson Was An Extraordinary Hero.

Jackie Robinson is an inspirational leader to people all over the world, as well as a genuine civil rights activist. He was well-respected, I mean, if you were the first black man to play in a professional baseball league, you'd be respected too. He played in the major leagues as a Brooklyn Dodger to start, but was traded to many different teams. He shoed many white, racist baseball players that race doesn't impact the ability of a person, but discriminating on a race defines the player themselves.

Jackie had such a movement among blacks, whites, and even children at the time. He had always cared a lot about the progress of blacks in baseball, and overall general welfare. He played the sport as if racism wasn't raging across the country and that he isn't treated like he was nothing. He played like he didm't care, hitting 40 home runs in the course of three years, and stealing 22 bases in that time as well. For major leaguers, this was almost as good as you can get, respectable especially with the stress of feeling like you have to win for future generations. So what makes Jackie so special versus other professional players today?

Here are five reasons to show that Robinson used his skills to become a legendary icon to many generations:

1.) He didn't argue~ Jackie had many misfortunes within the sport and one of which was white players nationwide believed it okay to harass Jackie, but as he stated, "They could have blown the whole bit to hell by acting belligerently and touching off of a race riot. That would have been all the bigots needed to set back the cause of progress of black men in sports another hundred years." (Robinson, 23*) This really shows that he is willing to take the pain of harassment over setting back blacks.

2.) He kept playing~ In a scene of the book, Jackie is hit in the head purposefully by another player acting unprofessionally. Jackie was down for a few moments, and he could have easily called it, thrown in the towel and quit, but after a coach started arguing, he told him it was okay and jogged down to first base, not looking at the upset pitcher.

3.) He attempted to be friends with other white players~ Jackie was especially known for his cooperation with the white players. In one scene, Jackie is showering and nobody would get in the water at the same time as he, but Jackie still tried to mingle with them. Eventually, Jackie had a friend on the team, Pee Wee Reese who stated, "You can hate a man for many reasons. Color is not one of them." This sparked the cooperation of Jackie's teammates with him, and next, the cooperation of mostly all whites and blacks.

4.) He had the support of fellow teammates~ Jackie had many friends later on in his career, and he even had the help of his manager, stating, "I do not care if the guy is yellow or black, or if he has stripes like a fuckin' zebra. I'm the manager of this team, and I say he plays. What's more, I say he can make us all rich. And if any of you cannot use the money, I will see that you are all traded." Even though he may not have been appreciated in the right ways, he was still an icon.

5.) Jackie was devoted to his fans~ As he describes his experience, he also describes that while he heard hundreds of white and black children yelling and cheering for him and he told himself he had to win. He also played for the blacks in the stands who may have been mistreated and played so they could have a good time with out the vulgar speech of hating whites people 

So is Jackie a hero, or is he just the first black baseball player? Many disagree with each other, but, hero or not, he is one to be remembered for his great accomplishments.


*book pages are referenced to iBooks.