Overcoming Obstacles In Major League Sports

Improved Essays
Life in the United States as a minority can be extremely challenging and discouraging at times, but Jackie Robinson set a hopeful example to many people that the color barrier could be broken as the first African American to play for the Dodgers in a major league sport. Throughout my life I have been faced with odds that have not been in my favor, and with casual racism, but I have prevailed in a similar smaller scale.
I attend a small high school of five hundred thirty seven students, and eighty percent of the student body is Caucasian. Sometimes, the race comments are unavoidable no matter how hard I try to shield myself from them. There is always one individual who thinks it is okay to ask me how I “crossed the border.” Despite these microaggressions,

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    A section of my life where I have overcome adversity is in my baseball career. Baseball has always been a source of great enjoyment in my life. I started playing baseball at the age of 8 with the goal of playing for my high school team. I played fall and spring every year prepping myself for the day it was my turn to suit of for the high school. Then when that day came I got an extreme letdown, cut from the team!…

    • 263 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “Be the change that you want to see in the world”~ Ghandi. Jackie Robinson saw a problem in the world that’s gone unsolved for quite some time now. Professional baseball has been a white man’s game for a while now. Robinson wanted to break the color barrier in professional baseball, so he went on to try out for the Brooklyn Dodgers and he did start to play. Robinson was treated as less than human whenever he made an appearance, but he did not abscond from his problems, he fought to surmount them.…

    • 268 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    On a cool September afternoon in the late 1940s, he stepped up to the plate. The thunderous sounds of boos filled the entire stadium as the lone black player stood tall in the batter's box. Fans, of both teams, belted beer bottles and boxes of cracker jacks onto the field. A chant of “hit the nigger” echoed throughout the ballpark. The catcher made his signal, and the pitcher stared down the batter with an evil eye.…

    • 229 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In today’s society, racism, prejudice, and stereotyping is often frowned upon and seen as politically incorrect. This wasn’t always the case, because just four decades ago, racism, prejudice and stereotyping was seen as a social norm. However, thanks to great leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Andrew Goodman and many others, we as people are allowed to live in a more diverse and welcoming environment that gives equal rights and respect to everyone no matter race, size, or country of origin. Although it is important to recognize the progress we have made throughout the years, it is also crucial that students are aware and understand the numerous obstacles that people of color had to go through, to further appreciate…

    • 959 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Growing up as a mixed kid who can “pass” for being white has given me a unique view point, where I am able to see both sides of being privilege and not within the matter of seconds. An example is how I am treated compared to my father who is one hundred percent Filipino. My dad’s physical appearance is different than mine due to the fact that his skin is much darker than mine. And I have noticed that people will speak and treat me differently than they would my dad because with my paler complexion I appear “friendlier”. There have been multiple studies and ever personal testaments of people talking about these types of scenarios that have happened to them.…

    • 757 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Jaxson Ziemann Miss Davis College Prep English 2 31 March 2017 A Hero’s Accomplishments Baseball is known as America’s pastime for good reason. The sport is does many things to draw interest to the game and how it’s played. Baseball is highly competitive, complex, and difficult to master. That is why people enjoy it so much.…

    • 1527 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    “A life is not important except in the impact it makes in other lives.” , this quote from Jackie Robinson helps introduce my topic because he had a role in breaking the color barrier and also keeping that barrier broken. The integration of Major League Baseball was the start of a cultural shift in professional sports to where African American’s began to gain more prevalence in the world of sports. In the MLB it was looked down upon for African American’s to be allowed in professional baseball. With I myself being an avid fan of the game I decided to take the liberty to make sure that I could highlight the men who helped revolutionize not just the game of baseball but who helped create a massive cultural shift in America.…

    • 1641 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Baseball: the sport where you stand around for 20 minutes and move 3 feet to the left and move 3 feet to the right. It’s so intense. It’s so intense that you could take a nap on the field with everything out there. Of course, I’m being sarcastic. The only time it’s actually fun is when you’re annihilating the other team while they’re asleep on the field.…

    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    My MMSA Experience

    • 266 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Without knowing my ethnicity, you'd be certain that I was a white male if you heard the way I spoke. Being raised in a mostly white neighborhood has caused me to speak in a very articulate fashion and behave in the same manner as the others around me. In pursuit of a better education, I started my first year at Michigan Math and Science Academy in the 7th grade. Unlike the other public schools I’ve attended before 7th grade, the student body at MMSA is predominately black. After being in mainly white schools for all of my life, my first year at MMSA took some adjusting to.…

    • 266 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Dr. Tatum Racism Analysis

    • 961 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Discussion on Racism Dr. Tatum begins the first chapter by talking about a student who asks if racism is still a thing. She continues to write about how when she asks her students who grew up in the same racial group as their own, most students raise their hand. I mention this because it is true for me, not because I grew up purposely segregated from other races, but because there was a very small population of different races where I grew up. Almost everyone in my hometown, growing up, was unaware of different races.…

    • 961 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Leading up to the Denver Broncos third Super Bowl win to take the fiftieth ever nation football championship. You must know that ever since the establishment of the Broncos football organization my dad’s side of the family was involved. And, I don’t mean involved as in, “hey we watch the games.”. I’m meaning involved as in my great grandparents donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the developing team. I’ve personally been to the Mile High Stadium at Sports Authority, in Denver, at least 15 times.…

    • 890 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I have had the dream of playing professional baseball since I was old enough to swing a baseball bat. I remember watching the Texas Ranger play on Tv when I was young and I aspired to be like them one day. The odds are not in my favor to accomplish this goal. However, I know that if I keep working my hardest every single day that maybe one day I will be able to accomplish this goal.…

    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ball Is Life

    • 549 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Although it may seem quite redundant to ask a 17 year old high school senior to consider what he may do with the education he receives at your university. However, the question posed causes one to reminisce on life. The mistakes that have led me to my current position and how I was able to climb out of darkness in order to obtain accomplishments and find my way to the promise land of higher education. As a person of color I am routinely forced to sit and witness my race continuously demoralize and dehumanize those of us who mean to be productive members of society.…

    • 549 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    MLB Team Case Study

    • 1095 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Once you take the environment into consideration, you must translate it into the environment in which the player will play potentially half of his games. Other than the environment, one must consider the competition. A player at Vanderbilt sees better competition every day compared to a player at Akron. Although the Akron kid might have better numbers, the Vanderbilt player has probably seen a handful of more top-notch pitchers. Sabermetrics help when scouting the Akron player to see if his numbers are able to be reproduced in the scout’s opinion.…

    • 1095 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Major league baseball's first few weeks have had so many storylines these three guys have been at the top of the list. These are my favorite feel-good stories to start the year because it wasn't just handed to them they've had to go through the grind and uncertainty of life of a baseball player and just shown tenacity and hard work can pay off! Three guys we all can learn from when faced with adversity in all walks of life not just sports. I hope they all continue to have success because they are fun to watch!…

    • 97 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays