Jackie+Robinson

“I’m not concerned with you liking or disliking me… All I ask is that you respect me as a human being,” Jackie Robinson once said. Jackie should be respected, he broke segregation in Americas pastime(Bilyeu). Jackie also worked with Martin Luther King JR himself(Bilyeu). Jackie was also the first person in UCLA history to receive a letterman in four sports(Bilyeu). Jackie also was elected to the Major League Baseball hall of fame in his first year of eligibility(Rubinstein). You see Jackie did a lot for African Americans, him getting into the Major League Baseball opened positions in all sports for them to play. You see Jackie started a revolution in sports (Damio).
 * Introduction**

Jackie Robinson was born in 1919 in Cairo, Georgia(Bilyeu). He was born to a family of share croppers(Conrad). His mother is Mallie Robinson, who supplied the family on her own(Conrad). In 1942 he joined the army(Damio). In 1944 he had an honorable discharge for not going to the back of a non-segregated bus(Bilyeu). In 1945 he accepted to play professional baseball with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League(Conrad). He played one season in the Negro League. On August 28Th of 1945 he had a three hour meeting with Rickey Branch(Rubenstein). He married Rachel Robinson that year before spring training(Conrad). In 1946 he played the season with the Montreal Royals(Rubenstein). In 1947 he began playing with the Dodgers(Damio). At the end of the season he won the Rookie of the Year Award. He appeared on the cover of Times and a poll found him second most popular American(Conrad). In 1949 he was voted the National League Most Valuable Player. He retired at the end of the 1956 season (Rubinstein). For a time he wrote for the New York Post 1959-1960. He then wrote for the New York Amsterdam News from 1962-1968(Rubinfield). He was elected into the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility1962(Rubenstein). His last public appearance was at the 1972 Cincinnati World Series(Bilyeu). Unfortunately that same year Jackie passed away(Damio).
 * Personal Background**

Jackie Robinson was strong minded he did not let the fans effect the way he played (Bilyeu). Jackie always played his best. He stayed strong no matter what he was told or what people did. Jackie always worked hard to be a good team player (Damio). He was also very passionate for working with young. He was fiercely competitive and always tried to be better (Conrad).
 * Personality Traits**

// Jackie was always determined even if the crowd did not like him he played his best to win the game. Jackie was aways unpredictable because of his mindsets and viewpoints. He was always earnest and focused on the task at hand. Jackie was very thoughtful and helped with the young (Rubinfield). Jackie was also very intelligent, one thing that helped him get into Major League Baseball. Another key factor was that he was very talented, every sport he tried he was great at. A third factor that helped him out was his experience with racism and the sport (Rubenstien). One of Jackie’s personalities was that he smiled a lot despite cruel fans. He was a class act and never showed emotions to the public (Tom). // // Although he was a great sport he was not very likeable (Conrad). Jackie was stubborn, in one incident he refused to go to the back of a segregated bus (Bilyeu). He also had a fiery temperature and one time he almost broke (Rubenstien). Jackie was also supportive towards the civil rights movement and worked with Martin Luther King Jr. (Bilyeu). //

//**Obstacles**// // Jackie Robinson’s life was not easy, he faced many obstacles to get to where he was. In this time period racism was around so things were much harder. At this time period segregation was around (Conrad). One unfair thing that happened was that he was arrested in Camp Hood, Texas, for not going to the back of a non-segregated bus. // // After leaving the military Jackie played baseball and faced a new challenge, he had to go through Rickey’s test, the owner of the Dodgers, to play Major League Baseball (Bilyeu). Jackie passed and went on but he still faced cruel fans. Not only that, the team refused to play with him and some even signed a petition (Tom). The fans were racist and booed him off the field. Some even threw tomatoes and garbage at him (Damio). Jackie received lots of hate mail. Lots of fans threatened him by saying they would kill him (Rubinfeld). He was harassed by many including the players from other teams. Before playing though he was told he would receive the most vituberation that any player had ever faced. The fans shouted out names but Jackie had to hold it in (Rubinstien). They were very bigotry shouting racial insults (Conrad). Luckily for all of them Jackie could not fight back (Rubinfeld). // // Jackie faced many problems throughout his career but he also faced some after (Conrad). He retired from baseball but still fought segregation (Bilyeu). When he was last seen publicly, he was nearly blind. Jackie was also crippled in his older days (Conrad). //

//**Historical Significance**// // Jackie Robinson did lots of things that landed him in history. He is mostly known for one thing even though he did lots. The thing that made him famous was that he was the first African American in Major League Baseball (Tom). He made his historical debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers in1947 (Conrad). Doing so he broke the color burrier in the Major League Baseball (Rubenfeld). Since he did this he is the most historically significant player in Major League Baseball (Conrad). Because he joined Major League Baseball, all black fan base from the Negroe League came to watch Major League Baseball. Also, Robinson is regarded as one of the most important players in baseball history (Rubinstien). The reason is because he broke the segregated pastime of the United States of America (Bilyeu). Previous to being in the major leagues, he accomplished many things also. // // One thing he accomplished prior to Major League Baseball is that he was the first athlete at University of California Los Angeles to earn a letterman in four different sports (Bilyeu). Jackie also served in the military as a lieutenant (Rubinstien). //

// After baseball, his number, fourty-two was retired from all teams in the Major League (Bilyeu). He also accomplished to open athe door for other African American workers (Damio). The less known Jackie Robinson, was a stalwart defender of American capitalism and American freedoms (Rubenfeld). Jackie was also elected to the Major League Baseball hall of fame in 1962 (Damio). He was also a central figure in the civil rights debate. Jackie toured the country raising money for NAACP’s Fight For Freedom Fund (Conrad). Not only that, he also worked with Martin Luther King Jr. to rebuild black churches that had been burnt down (Bilyeu). One historian once said ‘Ruth changed baseball; Robinson changed America (Rubinstien). You see Jackie did a lot for the world not just baseball. //

//**References**// //Bilyeu, Suzanne."1947:Jackie Robinson."// New York Times Upfront. //14 May. 2012: 18// eLibrary. //Web. 04 Oct. 2014. **SE#3**// //Conrad, David. "Sublime Hero."// World and I //13. (1998): 258.// eLibrary//. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.**SE#6**// //Damio, Christy. "Jackie Robinson."// Scholastic Action. //02 Feb. 2009: 12.// eLibrary. //Web. 04 Oct. 2014. **SE#2**// //Rubenfield, Mark. "Beyond Home Plate: Jackie Robinson on Life After Baseball."// Journal of American Culture //1(2014):76.// eLibrary. //Web. 25 Oct. 2014. **SE#4**// //Tom, Ohio. "Memories of Jackie and Campy."// MacClathy-Tribune Business News. //18 May 2014.// eLibrary. //Web. 17 Sep. 2014. **SE#1**// //Rubinstein, D, William. "Jackie Robinson and the integration of major league baseball."// History Today. //01 Sep. 2003:20.// eLibrary.// Web. 28 Jan. 2015. **SE#5**