Robinson, Jackie (1919-1972)
When Jackie Robinson broke Major League Baseball's color barrier in 1947, he was both hailed as a hero and vilified as a traitor. So much attention was paid to the color of his skin that it took the public a little while to realize the scope of his talents. When they did, it only increased the animosity of the men who were determined to keep America's national pastime an all-white bastion. But with his quiet dignity and brilliant athleticism, Robinson tore down the walls of bigotry, forever changing the course of American sports.
Although nineteenth-century baseball had fielded all-black teams and even featured a few black players on white teams, twentieth-century major league baseball had steadfastly been a white-only sport. Black players, however, found an outlet for the sport in various incarnations of the Negro Leagues throughout the first half of the twentieth century. These leagues were widely acclaimed among management, players, and fans of major league baseball both for the depth and scope of their talent as well as for the unique style of quick, tough, and athletic baseball that was played. Stars of the Negro Leagues such as catcher and slugger Josh Gibson, center fielder and brilliant base runner Cool Papa Bell, and the extraordinary pitcher Satchel Paige were known to be as good or better than their white contemporaries such as Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.
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