Jackie Robinson Turning Points

Throughout his professional career, Jackie Robinson, received criticism for being the first “black” player to play the game. Not only did Jackie Robinson manage to live up to the criticism, he also changed the face of America’s greatest past time forever. With his entrance into the MLB he opened the path for great black players like Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Willie Mays, and Ozzie Smith just to name a few. In crossing the color-barrier in baseball Robinson not only strived as a great player on the field, but also a inspiration to the black community of the field with his humility, and willingness to move forward in a time where blacks were not considered “equal”.

Jackie Robinson was the first African American to play in the MLB. Back then many people's point of view about African Americans was that they had some things, but the things should be worse than what the things white people had, and because of that he was proud yet uneasy because he would get a lot of hate for playing, and he did. The thing is he didn’t only get hate, but he also got threats against him and his family to physically harm him,“The hate mail piled up. There were threats against me and my family and even out-and-out attempts at physical harm to me.” Being in the MLB was hard and he could’ve given up, but he didn’t. Jackie Robinson stayed strong and he changed our point of view about African Americans not doing things that only white people could do and he helped our country change for the better

Have you ever been through a life changing experience? People can use their determination and taking risks to change their countries like I Never Had it Made by Jackie Robinson, Warriors Don’t Cry, by Melba Pattillo Beals, and “The Father of Chinese Aviation” by Rebecca Maskal.

Baseball has been known as America’s great sport since the 1920’s. Many people love to watch the games and create their own fantasy teams because they look up to the wide, diverse players on each team. Every team consists of males of different races and this helps bring culture into the great game. Having such a big diversity in one sport makes it easier for more people to enjoy because there is something in it for every person. However, baseball has not always been like this. From the very beginning of baseball, only white men were playing in the Major Leagues. African Americans were technically allowed to be on the team, but no one wanted them on the Major League teams. This was a time where African American’s were still treated badly and segregation was very big. People would not see an African American on a baseball team until the 1940’s. The first African American to play on a white team had to be the best at the game and needed the strength to withhold any feelings that would lead him to acting out because of the things the whites would do or say to him. This man happened to be the young, courageous Jackie Robinson. The hardships Jackie Robinson endured changed the game of baseball and still influences not just athletes, but people in every aspect of life.

Some people go through this with a negative outcome but with time it can turn into a positive outcome. Melba Patella Bells in ‘’Warriors Don’t Cry’’, Feng FU in ‘’Father of Cines Aviation’’, and Jackie Robinson in ‘’I Never Had It Made’’ all faced turning points that not only changed their lives for the better, but also their country.

To the average person, in the average American community, Jackie Robinson was just what the sports pages said he was, no more, no less. He was the first Negro to play baseball in the major leagues. Everybody knew that, but to see the real Jackie Robinson, you must de-emphasize him as a ball player and emphasize him as a civil rights leader. That part drops out, that which people forget. From his early army days, until well after his baseball days, Robinson had fought to achieve equality among whites and blacks. "Jackie acted out the philosophy of nonviolence of Martin Luther King Jr., before the future civil rights leader had thought of applying it to the problem of segregation in America"(Weidhorn 93). Robinson was an avid

Jackie robinson made a huge difference in history back in 1947 when he was the first african american the play baseball in history . He took chances by stepping on dodger field even when he got threats that the people would beat him up or kill him. Jackie stood tall and did not care what people thought about him or his color.In the season when Jackie started doing well with the Dodgers, Dodger fans got happy but they also had a lot of complaints about Jackie playing ball.Even though Jackie got many threats he keep playing the game and sacrifice his life to make a stand for the game he loved.Now today Jackie number 42 is retired and no one can have that number in the MLB.

Jackie Robinson was the first African American man to play in Major League Baseball. While Robinson was playing baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers he had to face the “resentment” of not only baseball fans but his fellow teammates and other teams. In paragraph three the text states,” It hadn't been that easy to fight the resentment expressed by players on other teams, by the team owners, or by bigoted fans screaming "n-----"(Robinson). This quote shows how people were disgusted by Robinson because of his skin color, but he didn’t let them get to him.This was challenging for him because it was hard to not fight back. Though instead of fighting back he proved himself worthy on the field and this helped him grow as a stronger person. Also, another way Robinson was challenged by his society was that the press was telling Robinson he was only in the Major Leagues to make a profit. In paragraph seven the text states,”Are you stupid enough not to understand that the Brooklyn club profited hugely,”(Robinson) This quote explains how Robinson had to deal with the press and keep in his mind that he was in the major Leagues for his talents, not the profit.  In addition he grew to be tolerant through this event. One last experience Robinson had to face was threats of danger. In paragraph three the text states,’’There were threats against me and my family and even out-and-out attempts at physical harm to me,”(Robinson). This quote explains how even though Robinson had racial tension, the reason he didn’t fight back was because he was a good person. This quote explains how Robinson had to be cautious of his surroundings. Also he had grown to be fearless through these experiences. Another experience Robinson faced was to be a role model as the first African American player in the major Leagues. In paragraph 10 the text states,” Suppressed and repressed for so

Jackie Robinson is known mostly for his achievements in athletics. In the video “Jackie Robinson - Changing Major League Baseball” from Bio.com, it is stated that “Robinson was the first African American to play in the majors in the twentieth century.” (0:20, 0:24). Not only had he started something new, Robinson had ended a sixty year old stigma. In an excerpt from “How Jackie Robinson Changed Baseball” by Jessica McBirney, it is stated that “In later seasons, more African-Americans joined other teams in the Major Leagues”, showing the impact that opening the gates had on the world of baseball (7). Robinsons’ breaking down of the color barrier in baseball has shown the impact that chasing dreams can have and has led to many people going after what they want.

From the Humble beginning Jackie Robinson would grow to be the first baseball player to break the major leagues Baseball color barrier that segregated the sport for more than 50 years. At the beginning when Jackie Robinson was chosen by the Brooklyn Dodgers coach to play in the majors. When Robinson played his first game he was called names and he was threatened. Throughout his decade-long career with the Dodgers, Robinson made advancements in the cause of civil rights for black athletes. After more than ten games robinson wasn’t known by his color, he was known as someone who never gave up and he kept pushing to make a stand on the team. The first time Robinson was introduced on the team not even his teammates looked at him or talked to him

Jackie Robinson did a lot in his life. Jackie became a memorable man in history for all of his great contributions to society. Jackie Robinson was the first African American to play MLB, promoted civil rights and his struggles. This Research paper will go into grave detail about Jackie’s life and his impact on society.

Throughout the 1940’s, our view on American’s baseball has changed substantially. Segregation has been a part of baseball for several decades. Jackie Robinson, an Africa American bore near Cairo, Georgia on January 31, 1919, started a new revolution for American baseball. Jackie Robinson was the first African American to play major league baseball in the 1940’s (York). Brooklyn Dodgers general manager, Branch Rickey drafted Jackie on April 15, 1947. This was the beginning of Jackie embarking on his new revolution for American baseball (- Baseball, the Color Line, and Jackie Robinson).

Jackie Robinson’s prosperity in Major League Baseball gave him a strong influence on the African American youth and helped lead them to believe that they could achieve integration in society. Taking into account that Jackie Robinson was an immense

One of the challenges that Jackie faced was receiving hate mail. “The hate mail piled up” (Robinson). Another challenge that Robinson faced was physical and verbal threats upon his life. “There were threats against me and my family, and even out-and-out attempts at physical harm to me” (Robinson). This demonstrates some of the challenges that Jackie faced as the first black professional baseball player of his time. Jackie Robinson responded to these events by working hard to be the best baseball player he could possibly be. He did this so that people would look past his race. Jackie grew and developed by ignoring the negativity and focused on the positive things that were happening in his life. Jackie also learned to appreciate the people around him who supported him during these difficult times. Jackie impacted his society/country by paving the way for other black athletes to play in professional sports. “Suppressed and repressed for so many years, they needed a victorious black man as a symbol” (Robinson). This concludes evidence of  how difficult it was for Jackie Robinson to become the first black professional baseball

Turning points are important times in people’s lives that can change the way people see the world. Turning points can also change history. Martin Luther King Jr. had a turning point and changed history. A few people who wrote about their and others turning points in life. These people’s stories are I Never Had It Made an autobiography by Jackie Robinson, Warriors Don’t Cry a memoir by Melba Beals, and “The Father Of Chinese Aviation” an article by Rebecca Maksel. These stories are about Jackie Robinson, Melba Beals, and Feng Ru. All three of these people faced a turning point in their lives.