Jesse Owens Research Paper

Pitchers often threw the ball directly at Robinson, base runners tried to spike him, and he was subjected to a steady stream of racial insults. He received hate mail, death threats, and even warnings that his baby boy would be kidnapped. Through it all, Robinson held his tongue in deference to Rickey's wishes. Robinson let his playing do the talking, and before long he was known as one of the most exciting players in baseball. Soon fans both black and white were filling ballparks to see him in action, and the Dodgers set new attendance records. Most of his fellow teammates fully supported him as they became convinced of Robinson's value to the club. The Dodgers won the pennant in 1947 and Jackie, at the age of twenty eight, was named Rookie of the Year, an award that would be named after him in 1987.

“Although I wasn’t invited to shake hands with Hitler, I wasn’t invited to the White House to shake hands with the President either.” - Jesse Owens. Jesse Owens was an African American athlete that won four gold medals in the 1936 Olympics at Berlin during the Nazi regime. The 1936 Olympics was quite controversial because of the Nazi’s and their policies for minority groups like the Jews. It was so controversial that the United states nearly pulled out of the international spectacle. Germany wanted to use the Olympics to showcase their country. But Jesse Owens took much of the attention away due to his athletic display. Even with his legendary performance in Berlin, it didn’t change much of his status in the US as a black man. In the

In 1947, Robinson made his debut at ebbits field for the dodgers and became the first African American baseball player to play professional baseball. Robinson had a great season even though he took lots of threats from fans. He also won rookie of the year at the end of the season. During Robinsons decade long career with the dodgers, he and his team won the national league

Robinson began his role as an advocate for civil rights in America even before he was drafted onto a major league baseball team. In 1942, he was inducted into the Army. This was during World War II. At this time, there was still racial discrimination in the Army. It wasn’t as much as back in the South, however it was still prominent. Robinson was part of a segregated unit located in Camp Hood. He became a lieutenant pretty quick, although he still had to go through opposition to become one. At the time, Lieutenant Robinson’s fight against racism started when he boarded a military bus, towards the middle. Once the bus driver saw Robinson, he ordered him to move to the back of the bus. Robinson refused and argued with the driver. After the altercation, Robinson was asked to move to the hospital to stay,

Jackie Robinson- a revolutionary baseball player did not stop simply with changing sports, he fought in all aspects for the civil rights that he believed African Americans should have. “His courage and bravery played a major role in the history of integration, both on the field and throughout American society, and no history of the civil rights movement would be complete without noting Robinson’s major role… he was one of the movement’s strongest voices” (Gates). Jackie was a monumental and impactful voice in the Civil Rights Movement, he spoke out to the public and made his opinion and dream known that he believed African Americans deserved equal rights and status with whites in America. When his virtuous friend, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested in Georgia, Robinson asked Presidential Candidate Nixon to intervene and release King from jail (Gates). Also, Robinson corresponded with people like Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon to try and further civil rights (Anderson and Mosor). He was also arrested while serving in the army for refusing to move to the back of a bus and then was placed in martial court with all odds stacked against him, Robinson surprisingly won the case and was not convicted of the two charges for disobedience (PBS). Winning the case proved that Jackie

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

April 15 was Opening Day in 1947, Robinson's first season in the Major Leagues. Initiated for the first time on April 15, 2004, Jackie Robinson Day is celebrated each year on that day. The festivity is a result of Robinson's memorable career, best known for becoming the first black major league baseball player of the modern era in 1947. His debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers (today known as the Los Angeles Dodgers) ended approximately eighty years of baseball segregation, also known as the baseball colour line, or colour barrier. He also was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962, remembered for his services with the number 42 jersey. The gala is celebrated at varied ballparks by Major League team players. On that one day, all players, coaches, and managers on both teams, and the umpires, wear #42 on their jerseys. Shea Stadium was one of the prominent venues hosting the event, having commemorated the retirement of Robinson's number 42 jersey in 1997. Bob DuPuy, the President and Chief Operating Officer of Major League baseball, described Jackie Robinson Day as a significance "not only for baseball, but for our country in general." Being a sportswoman myself and growing up in an environment where there is sports politics everywhere, I can see how feed up Jackie must of been with the hatred he was receiving from players and fans. For a man to go through all of that and come out on the upper hand his what I call astonishing. For Jackie to be remembered by being an elite athlete and having overcome difficulty not only in baseball but also at home, Jackie is one to

The story of Jackie Robinson has become one of America's most iconic and inspiring stories. Since 1947, American history has portrayed Jackie Robinson as a hero, and he has been idolized as a role model to the African American baseball community. It is an unarguable fact that he was the first to tear down the color barriers within professional baseball. The topic of Robinson’s role in integration has long been a point of discussion amongst baseball historians. Researchers have accumulated thousands of accredited documents and interviews with friends and team mates such as short stop, Pee Wee Reese, and team owner, Branch Rickey. However, few journalists have asked why Robinson was selected and what was Branch

At the end of Jackie’s Rookie season he was named the National League Rookie of the Year as a colored man! That year Jackie got 12 homers, a league-leading 29 steals, and a .297 average. In 1949, he was selected as the NL's Most Valuable player of the Year and he won the batting title with a .342 average the same year. Jackie was Picked and put into the MLB Hall of Fame in 1962. Jackie Robinson's life and legacy will be remembered as one of the most important in American history.

Even though there was a lot of racism, Jackie never let it overcome him. When the U.S. joined the World War II, Jackie put on another uniform. At war Jackie met another childhood idol in the black wrestler Joe Louis. After Jackie resigned from the army he decided to play baseball for the negro league. Jackie played for the Kansas City Monarchs. He got to play with some of the greats, Satchel Paige, Cool Papa Bell, and Josh Gibson. After his first year with the team Jackie led the team in hitting. One sportswriter was able to convince Jackie and 2 other black players to try out for the Boston Red Sox. Of course the Red Sox said no. Though the Red Sox owner said no, the Brooklyn Dodgers president Branch Rickey had interest in Jackie. In 1945 Jackie Robinson became the first black baseball player when he signed with the Dodgers. He first though had to make it through the Minor League. He played for the Montreal Royals. He started second base for the team. He was able to lead the team to the Junior League World Series. He was also the MVP. In 1947, Jackie made it to the Major Leagues. In his first year Jackie was the Rookie of the Year. He helped lead the Dodgers to beat the Cardinals in the NL pennant. In 1949, Jackie Robinson won the MVP. He helped the Dodgers win the World Series in 1955. His career only lasted 10 years. On January 5, 1957 Jackie Robinson retired. In 1962, he was

Jackie Robinson's entry into the Major Leagues was far from a walk in the park. He climbed over countless obstacles just to play with white men, some of which, he was better then. He not only had to compete with the returning players from the war, but he also contended with racism. "Many towns in the South did not want racially mixed teams"(Weidhorn 53). As time went on, cities realized that Robinson offered them free publicity.

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

Before Jackie Robinson became the most famous African-American baseball player in the Major Leagues. He signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. In 1947 he was named Rookie of the Year, National League MVP and also was a World Series champion in 1955. Jackie was born in Cairo, Georgia on January 31, 1919. (“Jackie Robinson”). Jackie had played four sports at

Jackie Robinson was a star in the eyes of the black people around him. A hero even. He gave them something to cheer for, and a reason to

The 1936 Olympic games took place in Berlin, Germany, when Jesse Owens was twenty-two. At that time, Adolf Hitler was the ruler of Germany. Hitler believed that the German or “Aryan” race was superior to all others and he intended to prove it in the Olympics. He did not approve of the Americans having black or Jewish athletes. The Olympics began on August 1, 1936.(Raatma 23) The first event that Jesse Owens competed in was the 100 yard dash on August 3. He finished first in ten point three-seconds, winning his first gold medal, which tied an Olympic world record