Jackie Robinson

A True Hero (http://www.congressionalgoldmedal.com /JackieRobinson.jpg)

Who do you think of when you hear the word hero? One of the first people I think about when I hear the word hero is Jackie Robinson because he broke the barrier of racism and discrimination to be the first African American to play major league baseball. As an honor to Jackie Robinson, his number was retired, meaning that no other major league ball player will ever wear his number. Being a hero may sometimes lead to getting rewarded or at least remembered for your actions.

I think Jackie Robinson was the best kind of hero: the kind that finds something wrong with society and fights to change it. Just think, if Jackie Robinson hadn’t fought to play pro ball, we might still have all white guys on all of our sports teams. People such as Randy Moss or Donovan McNabb never would have become two of the most wanted players on everyone’s fantasy football teams. We might not have been able to watch Victor Crenshaw place third in state wrestling last year for Sycamore. Many of our favorite athletes probably wouldn’t be who they are today had Jackie not stuck his neck out to play pro ball.

Jackie Robinson was born January 31, 1919 in a place called Cairo, Georgia. At this time, segregation was everywhere in his hometown. He was discriminated against just for being African American. This didn’t stop him from playing sports with the neighborhood white kids though. Jackie would blow all of them away at almost any game that they wanted to play, especially baseball. When he was seventeen, Jackie excelled in sports and even won the city ping pong tournament. In 1941, Jackie became the first person at UCLA to ever letter in four sports in one year. In 1945, Jackie joins the Montreal Royals, a minor league team of the Brooklyn Dodgers where they won the “Little World Series.” In 1946, Jackie married a girl named Rachel. They have three kids named Jackie Jr., Sharon and David.

Jackie was finally noticed by the Major Leagues. In 1947, Jackie signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers, making him the first African American professional baseball player. Jackie was named Rookie of the Year. Jackie made a salary of $8500 a year. Jackie had ten great years with the Dodgers. They won six pennants and a world series. In 1957, Jackie Robinson retired, but not before opening the gateway for African American athletes everywhere. In 1962, Jackie was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.

Sadly, on October 24, 1972, Jackie Robinson died at age 53. In 1973, Jackie’s wife Rachel started the Jackie Robinson Foundation, an organization that helps minority students in the United States. Today, Jackie is still helping people. His foundation gives away around 141 scholarships to more than 60 different colleges per year. I guess Jackie Robinson just couldn’t stop giving.