Jackie Robinsn: A Man Who Changed America

Jackie Robinson made one of the most daring moves by playing Major

League baseball. The amount of pain and suffering this man went through was so harsh

that I don't know how he was able to play. Carl Erskine said,"Maybe I see Jackie

differently. You say he broke the color line. But I say he didn't break anything. Jackie

was a healer. He came to rectify a wrong, to heal a sore in America"(Dorinson back

cover).

Jackie was born January thirty-first 1919. Shortly after he was born, his father

deserted his family. Almost a year after that, Jackie's uncle came to visit and convinced

his family to move to California with him. The whole family moved out there with his

uncle. They moved to Pasadena,California.

The neighborhood they moved into was mostly a white neighborhood. The white

people did not want them in the neighborhood. They would criticize Jackie and his

family. When he was about eight years old, he had learned to stand up for himself and

answer back when the occasion demanded.

Jackie went to Muir Tech. High School. At high school is where he began to get

interested in sports. He competed in football, baseball, basketball, and track. He was a

good player in every sport. During high school, college recruiters failed to pay

attention to him. He didn't receive any scholorship, so he decided to go to Pasadena

Junior College.

Pasadena Junior College is where Jackie began to get noticed for his athletic

abilities. He set many records in track, baseball, and football. Babe Horrel wanted to

recruit Jackie from Pasadena Junior College. One of the best athletes on the West

Coast(Tygiel 27)

After two years at Pasadena Junior College, he transferred

to UCLA. Jackie went

here so his brother, Frank would be able to attend most of the games. His brother never

did get to see a game because he died in a motocycle accident.

At UCLA, Jackie lettered in four sports in one year. He was the first player to do

that. He played track, baseball, basketball, and football. Jackie was one of the best all-

around athletes that UCLA has ever had(Tygiel 26). Jackie decided to drop out of college

and join the army.

Jackie applied for Office Candidate School. He was stationed at Fort Riley in

Oklahoma. Blacks were not accepted for OCS. Jackie did not like this and confronted the

action. This was his first attempt at racial discrimination. He sent complaints to the

Secretary of Defense. Within a few days, Jackie and several blacks were in OCS(Duckett 23-24)

After the Army, Jackie joined the Kansas City Monarchs. This is a team in the

Negro Leagues. He was paid three hundred dollars a month. Blacks who wanted to play

baseball could sign up on black teams only. These teams were poorly financed, and their

management and promotion left much to be desired. Travel schedules were unbelievably

hectic(Duckett 36).

Branch Rickey was the baseball coach