The place was Little Rock Arkansas; the year was 1957. This was the integration of African American students into an all-white school at Little Rock Central High School. It was a cultural shock to all of America.
Long before the Little Rock Nine, the color barrier was broken with a baseball bat. Jack Roosevelt Robinson, better known as Jackie, shattered the color barrier in major league baseball. Ten years earlier than the Little Rock Nine, Robinson was the first African to play major league baseball. He did this wearing a Brooklyn Dodgers jersey with the number 42 on back.
Jackie Robinson had a humble beginning, growing up being the only black family on a racist white block in Cairo, Georgia. As a young man Jackie was a multi-sport letterman at UCLA, playing football, basketball, track, and baseball.
Despite being an incredible athlete for UCLA, Jackie had to leave because of financial difficulties. After leaving school, Jackie enlisted in the Army. He spent two years in the Army when he was honorably discharged when he was court marshaled for his objections to incidents of racial discrimination.
After Jackie’s service in the Army, he went back to baseball. He played one year in the Negro Baseball League in 1945 for the Kansas City Monarchs. In 1947 Dodgers president Branch Rickey approached Jackie with the offer to play for the team.
Jackie made the most of his opportunity and in his rookie year he was named Rookie of the Year. His stats on the diamond showed why he was named Rookie of the Year: he hit 12 homeruns, stole a league leading 29 bases, and batted a .297 average.
These stats and awards that Jackie received his rookie year were great accomplishments, yet, none of them would amount to the accomplishments of his off of the field. America was in turmoil and most everything was segregated. Jackie prospered through the worst of the bigotry by just shrugging his shoulders and playing the game he loved to play.
His perseverance through all prejudices came with great reward: in 1949 Jackie won the MVP of the National League. His career ended in 1956 after he retired, and he was later inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.
Jackie Robinson wasn’t the first to break color barrier in sports; for example, Jesse Owens took home four gold medals in the 1936 Berlin Olympics in the 100 meter dash, long jump, 400 meter relay, and the 200 meter dash. These African American athletes persevered through the darkest of times in the world and broke down barriers. They aren’t just remembered for being the first: they were some of the greatest to have ever played the game.