Jackie Robinson
& the Civil Rights
Movement
Chapter 23 Part III
Did Jackie Robinson
Have More of an Effect
on Civil Rights as an
Athlete or as a Political
Activist?
“Even before I went to high school and college I resolve not to take insults without retaliating. Growing up in Pasadena, I encountered many situations which I considered unjust. I remember going to the YMCA and being told that Negroes were allowed to use the facilities of the Y only on a certain day of the week…”
- Jackie Robinson
Muir Technical High School
Jackie always enjoyed playing little league in Cali.
and was very good
Four sport athletic
starFootball
Basketball
Track
Baseball
Pasadena Junior College
1937: Entered Pasadena Junior College
Won league baseball championship
Junior college football championship
Set junior college broad jump record
25’ 6.5”
UCLA
Jackie had trouble in school, but ended up going to UCLA He played football, baseball, track and field,
and basketball.1939: enters UCLA on athletic scholarshipFirst student to earn 4 varsity letters in one yearNational champion in long jumpHighest scorer in the pacific coast
conference in basketball All-American football running back until
his eligibility expiredPerformed better in track, basketball, and football than in baseball
After UCLA
1941: Joined an intergraded semi-pro football league Honolulu Bears
He played a game at Pearl Harbor and left 2 days before the Japanese attacked
1942: Drafted to the ArmyStationed at fort Riley in Kansas
As a Professional
Athlete
The Negro Leagues
Established on February 13, 1920 Kansas City, Missouri YMCA
President: Andrew Foster “Father of black baseball”
By 1923 there were two leagues NNL had teams in the South and Midwest
ECL had teams on the East coast
1924: First Negro World Series
1945: Robinson released from the Army and joined the Negro Baseball league
Kansas City Monarchs
Negro League Team in the NNL
Robinson made $400 a month
Jackie played 47 games (1 season): 163 at bats
5 home runs
.387 batting average
13 stolen bases
The Major Leagues
Branch Rickey: President of the Brooklyn DodgersWanted to bring the
ideal black player into the MLB
August 28,1945: Jackie Robinson was interviewed by Branch RickeyJackie showed that he had the character along with his baseball talentRickey wanted a player
who was strong enough not to fight back
October 23,1945: Signs with Montreal Royals, a Dodgers farm team
“I cannot face my God much longer knowing
that his black creatures are held separate and
distinct from his white creatures in the game
that has given me all that I can call my own”
-Branch Rickey
Robinson is seen with Branch Rickey signing a contract with the Brooklyn
Dodgers farm team.
Breaking the Color Barrier
April 1947: Major League debut as Dodgers first baseman wearing #42
Being Bigger Than Life
Received racial threats from white fans and players Fans threw trash on him Opposing pitchers hit him purposely while players
spiked him with their cleats Teammates petitioned to get Jackie off the
Dodgers Players expected him to carry their bags and
shine their shoes
Robinson family received many death threatsHad to obey segregation laws Rode in back of team bus Had to enter restaurants through black entrances
while rest of team went through the front
Threats Target Robinson
Spring Training with the
Dodgers
Spring 1947: Jackie goes to Cuba with the rest of the Brooklyn DodgersSeveral Dodger players signed a
petition refusing to play
• This petition was quickly put down by Branch Rickey who threatened to fire all protesting players.
Becoming an Idol
Jackie excelled for the Dodgers
Never started any fights or said anything about all the abuse he received
Blacks saw Jackie as a hero Eventually, even whites
began to see Jackie as a heroic figure
Became a symbol in American society
Respect from his Teammates
I started the season as a lonely man, often feeling like a black Don Quixote tilting at a lot of white windmills. I ended it feeling like a member of a solid team.
-- Jackie Robinson
Jackie’s Popularity Rises
Life Magazine 1951
Gaining Respect from Whites
Jackie Gains Respect
Jackie Steals Home in World Series
Career Statistics
Batting Average: .311Hits: 1518Homeruns: 137First Game: April 15, 1947Final Game: September 30, 19561947: National League rookie of the year1949: National League MVP6 time All-Star
The Hall of Fame
1962: Inducted into Hall of Fame
Inducted on first ballot 124 votes out of 160
ballots (77.5%)
New Hopes for Black People
Jackie Robinsons success in the major leagues: Proved that blacks could succeed in
America
Democracy became more meaningful to blacks
Increased respect for blacks
As a Political
Activist
“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”
-Jackie Robinson
Martin Luther King Jr. and Jackie Robinson before a press conference in NYC
Jackie’s Idols
Though Jackie had similar views and looked up to these two civil rights leaders, he did not agree with their actions.
Jackie went about fighting civil rights differently
Martin Luther King Jr. Malcolm X
Standing up for Black Rights
July 1944: While in the army, Jackie refuses an order to ride in the back of the busFort Hood, Texas
• Robinson was court marshaled
NAACP, black press, and black population were furiousRobinson was found innocent, and
was released from the army
President Truman
July 26, 1948: President Truman desegregates the Army
Executive order 9981
4 years after Jackie’s protest
For the Good of the People
Jackie Robinson Construction Company Built low income housing for the poor and
underprivileged
“Afternoon of Jazz” Annual Concerts in which first year earnings
went to the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
• Supported Civil Rights work and voter registration in the South
Freedom National Bank Founded as well as worked as chairman
• It was a minority-owned bank in Harlem, N.Y.
Civil Rights in Baseball
1972: Jackie Criticizes baseball for having no black managerTwo years later baseball has its first
black manager• 1974: Frank Robinson with the Cleveland
Indians
Letter to the White House
August 1957: Letter to Presidential Assistant Fred Morrow
Letter to President Eisenhower
1958: Letter to President Eisenhower1954: Supreme Court said that all states must integrate schools (Brown v. Board of Education)Eisenhower ordered federal troops to protect black students in Little Rock ArkansasJackie was elated with Eisenhower’s actionsBut thought they were too
lateRobinson’s letter said that he was thankful for their support and reminded them that all black citizens deserve full federal support for all civil rights under the constitution
Integrated
Schooling
Youth march for integrated schoolsIncluded popular
figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph Bunche, A Phillip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, and Jackie
Marched down Constitutional avenue to the Lincoln memorialAsked all people to
sign a petition and asked for speedy integration of schools
Politics
I guess you'd call me an independent, since I've
never identified myself with one party or
another in politics. . . I always decide my vote by
taking as careful a look as I can at the actual
candidates and issues themselves, no matter
what the party label.
-Jackie Robinson
Nelson Rockefeller’s Presidential (Republican) Campaign Robinson was a national director for
Rockefeller’s campaign
When Rockefeller elected N.Y. governor, Robinson became special assistant for community affairs
Hubert Humphrey’s Presidential (Democratic) Campaign Robinson helped campaign for Humphrey in
presidential primary
Robinson on the Campaign Trail
Nixon v. Kennedy
1960 election: Robinson supported Nixon
over Kennedy
In private meetings with Robinson:
• Nixon seemed friendly, charming, a good
leader, and a big supporter of African
American Civil rights
• Kennedy did not seem as supportive and
had trouble looking Robinson in the eyes.
Jackie wondered if this had to do with a
prejudice against him and other blacks.
Changing Opinion: Robinson
and Kennedy
Robinson no longer feared that Kennedy didn’t support black people and began believing that Kennedy was a good leader This was after the election of
John F. Kennedy
Robinson also began to believe that Kennedy was a better candidate than Nixon was Nixon refused to campaign in Harlem while Kennedy didWhen Henry Cabot Lodge (Nixon running-mate) claimed
that there will be a black member in the Nixon cabinet, Nixon responded that Lodge was speaking for himself, not the both of them.
Kennedy spoke publicly about his objection to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
• This helped assure Robinson that Kennedy was not a racist and would be a supporter of black civil rights
Letter to
President
Kennedy
1961
Signified his growing trust in president Kennedy
Robinson stated that he is happy in the way Kennedy's administration is going thus far
However Jackie wanted Kennedy and his administration to help at a quicker pace.
Letter to President Johnson :
1967
Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders opposed the Vietnam war
Jackie wrote letter to let President Johnson know that he had the support of many black Americans regarding the warWanted Johnson to
remember and support black Americans
To President Lyndon B. Johnson
Robinson, as well as many other Americans, were angry about protestors that were being clubbed in Selma Alabama.This resulted in several deaths and a lot of injuries
Robinsons letter urged him to stop this immediately
Letter to President Nixon’s
Assistant: 1972
To Roland L. Elliot(Presidential Assistant)
Expresses concern about blacks still not obtaining full rights
Jackie warns Government to show more support towards blacks Thinks blacks will
become more aggressive and this could hurt America
Jackie’s Legacy
The Jackie Robinson Foundation
Created in 1973 by Rachel Robinson
Gives minority youth scholarships to attend collegeJackie Robinson Scholars
Each scholar is also given: $7,200 in financial support
Mentors
summer internships and permanent jobs
266 Scholars attending 93 colleges across the United States
Jackie Robinson Field
Home of UCLA baseball
27 seasons since the field was made
A private gift from Hoyt Pardee, an old classmate of Jackie Robinson UCLA ’41
The Jackie Robinson Award
Rookie of the Year Award
1987: became known as The Jackie Robinson Award
60th
Anniversary
April 15, 2007
Over 200 players wore #42 in honor of Jackie RobinsonEvery member of the Dodgers wore #42
To Be Considered
Although Jackie Robinson was
more active and affective as a
political activist, would he have
been as successful if he was
not a superior athlete?
The right of every American to first-class citizenship is the most important issue of our time.
-- Jackie Robinson
The End