Jackie Robinson And Andrew Robinson's American Dream

Jackie Robinson’s American Dream The American Dream has been a prevalent concept in America since the turn of the twentieth century. As with many concepts, The American Dream is unique for each individual depending on their experiences. However, for Jackie Robinson and Andrew Carnegie the definition of the American Dream was similar, but because of their circumstances they took different paths to achieve their goals. Both men desired freedom, and while Andrew Carnegie was able to earn his freedom by amassing an enormous wealth, Jackie Robinson had to fight through decades of mistreatment for his freedom because of his race. Jackie Robinson’s upbringing molded him into the man he became later in life. Similar to many others, he was subject …show more content…
In his first, and only, season with the Montreal Royals, Robinson won the batting title, and led the Royals to winning the pennant (Robinson 49). Despite the numerous crowds and players shouting obscenities, games being cancelled, police stopping him from playing, and even insults from his teammates Jackie was able to be one of the leading players at the level. Moreover, his success with Montreal lead to him being called up to the Dodgers. Furthermore, Jackie Robinson made his Major League debut on April 15th, 1947, and broke the color barrier that had stood since the 1880’s (Robinson 57). However, Robinson received much of the same treatment on the Dodgers as he did in Montreal. There was a substantial amount of hate mail and threats directed to Jackie and his family (Robinson 63). Nevertheless, there were as many if not more Robinson supporters than critics. Actually, African-Americans attended games at record rates, and other teams, like the Cleveland Indians, began to follow the Dodger’s example (Robinson 66). Spectacularly, Jackie Robinson ended the year on a high note by winning Rookie of the Year, and the national league pennant. Accolades were no stranger to Jackie, and by the conclusion of his career, Jackie Robinson lead the Dodgers to One World Series Championship, five National League Pennants, one Most Valuable Player award, and the Rookie of the Year award …show more content…
Immediately after he retired Jackie accepted a job as the Vice President at the Chock Full O’Nuts Corporation (Robinson 125). Additionally, Robinson took a job touring with the NAACP to raise funds for civil rights. Accompanied by Franklin Williams, Jackie Robinson was able to help the NAACP break their previous fundraising records (Robinson 129). In due time, Robinson left the NAACP because he was disappointed with their strategy, but regretted leaving the organization “rather than remaining on the inside to try to fight for reform” (Robinson 131). Following his induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962, Robinson joined Nelson Rockefeller’s campaign as an advisor for the 1964 New York Governor election and began a career in politics. Alongside Dunbar McLaurin, Robinson founded the Freedom Bank in 1964 to help African-Americans secure loans (Robinson 184). Afterward, Robinson was appointed to an official position in the Governor’s Executive Chamber as the Special Assistant to Community Affairs (Robinson 202). At this point Robinson’s career begins to blur with his social