Jackie Robinson was not always well-admired. In fact, many detested him. In a country divided by race, many wondered how a person of color would perform in a ‘white game’? That game was the sport of baseball. Robinson and his original supporters/colleagues wondered, how a person could care more about skin color than success? Robinson’s consistent heroic stance against racism changed the field of baseball from race-divided leagues into a more diverse community and influenced the end of segregation in the United States. Before Robinson played for the major leagues, Brooklyn Dodgers, baseball leagues were split by skin color. According to Bethany Pierce, a historian, the National Association of Baseball players banned black Americans. In 1867,
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With all the power and influence Anson held over the baseball world, he wrongfully used it to enforce total separation of races within the leagues; therefore, increasing the time the sport would lack diversity. Since black Americans in the late 1800s were unable to play in regulated baseball teams, they found their own way to participate in the sport. In the 1880s, New York and Floridian hotel owners established teams including African-American employees. The teams played for guest entertainment and were compensated. Black Americans prayed for the ability to play in their own leagues and, consequently, in the early 1920s, the unofficial ‘Negro Leagues’ began (Pierce). The author of Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball Scott Simon writes that since the leagues were unofficial, the owners tended to underpay the athletes compared to the amount of success they were bringing (57). These teams gained success and publicity from both a rising number of black people in cities and the help of black-owned newspapers. This success, unfortunately, was …show more content…
It was Branch Rickey alone wanting black players in the major leagues (Simon 103). The fact that the major league owners were so strongly racist that they would rather have a segregated team than a winning team is absurd. Despite the disagreement and stubbornness from the other major league owners, Branch Rickey was a strong-willed individual, and he was going to have Robinson on his team. Rickey’s decision was one of the most controversial decisions in baseball history. After all, he was going against what other owners wanted, what other players wanted, and what the audience wanted. Rickey and Robinson had a strong bond, and they both knew what they wanted: to prove everyone wrong. Leading into his first major league season in 1947 Jackie Robinson, a person known for his courage, was reasonably scared. Journalist Mark Schug and others claim that with the news of his commitment to the Brooklyn Dodgers, players from his and opposing teams announced they wanted to boycott. The protest did not stop with simply threatening to boycott, it turned into full-on
With all the power and influence Anson held over the baseball world, he wrongfully used it to enforce total separation of races within the leagues; therefore, increasing the time the sport would lack diversity. Since black Americans in the late 1800s were unable to play in regulated baseball teams, they found their own way to participate in the sport. In the 1880s, New York and Floridian hotel owners established teams including African-American employees. The teams played for guest entertainment and were compensated. Black Americans prayed for the ability to play in their own leagues and, consequently, in the early 1920s, the unofficial ‘Negro Leagues’ began (Pierce). The author of Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball Scott Simon writes that since the leagues were unofficial, the owners tended to underpay the athletes compared to the amount of success they were bringing (57). These teams gained success and publicity from both a rising number of black people in cities and the help of black-owned newspapers. This success, unfortunately, was …show more content…
It was Branch Rickey alone wanting black players in the major leagues (Simon 103). The fact that the major league owners were so strongly racist that they would rather have a segregated team than a winning team is absurd. Despite the disagreement and stubbornness from the other major league owners, Branch Rickey was a strong-willed individual, and he was going to have Robinson on his team. Rickey’s decision was one of the most controversial decisions in baseball history. After all, he was going against what other owners wanted, what other players wanted, and what the audience wanted. Rickey and Robinson had a strong bond, and they both knew what they wanted: to prove everyone wrong. Leading into his first major league season in 1947 Jackie Robinson, a person known for his courage, was reasonably scared. Journalist Mark Schug and others claim that with the news of his commitment to the Brooklyn Dodgers, players from his and opposing teams announced they wanted to boycott. The protest did not stop with simply threatening to boycott, it turned into full-on