Once Robinson became accepted around the league he became much more than just a baseball player but also a voice. “In 1949, Rickey told Robinson that he had “earned the right to be himself.” Robinson now felt that he could speak his mind about the issues of the day, including politics.” (3) “Robinson became a vocal champion for African-American athletes, civil rights, and other social and political causes. In July 1949, he testified on discrimination before the House Un-American Activities Committee. In 1952, he publicly called out the Yankees as a racist organization for not having broken the color barrier five years after he began playing with the Dodgers.” (1) “Robinson began writing letters to people like Eisenhower and Richard Nixon, even supporting Nixon in his bid to become President against Kennedy. When Martin Luther King was jailed, Robinson tried to get Nixon to make some calls and get King out of jail, Nixon declined, making Robinson realize that Nixon was just using him. As it turned out Kennedy along with his brother Robert made the calls to get King out of jail; prompting King to speak out when he was released from jail, saying that Kennedy had his vote. Therefore swinging the black vote towards Kennedy and ultimately winning him the election. This helped solidify Robinson as more than the smiling second baseman, but a voice from the African American community. Robinson started using his public stature to speak out on certain issues. He had such an impact on social, political, and economic issues because of his popularity. Ali and he are two excellent examples of people who used their statuses to reach out and change the world. In the World Series in 1972, Jackie Robinson was invited to throw out the first pitch because it was the 25th anniversary of his breaking into baseball. Even then he was still speaking out on the issue of race, stating in his speech that even though he was happy with baseballs progress, he would be even happier when he looked down the third-base line and saw a black manager.” (video) He died 9 days later on October 24, 1972 due to heart problems and diabetes. Most people when they die would like to think that they left this world better than they found it. Whether or not Robinson realized the significance of what he had done will never be known, but as sports fans, we see the impact of him constantly.
Branch Rickey was not man who shied away from controversy; he revolutionized the game of baseball three times. He was the genius behind the St. Louis Cardinals in the early half of the 20th century when they used their farm systems to develop players. This turned the Cardinals into a juggernaut that quite frequently beat on the big city boys from Chicago and New York. As previously stated he also signed Jackie Robinson, leading to a major breakthrough in baseballs color barrier. The third baseball revolution came when Rickey was president of the Continental League; he played an important role in the expansion of the American and National Leagues Rickey felt that the person destined to break baseballs color barrier had to be a special player. Not just a great athlete was needed but that person needed to be able to take the racial abuse that everyone knew was coming. “From the beginning of his career with the Dodgers, Robinson's will was tested. Even some of his new teammates objected to having an African-American on their team. People in the crowds sometimes jeered at Robinson, and he and his family received threats. Jackie took it all because Rickey made Robinson promise to not fight back when confronted with racism.” (2) His job was simple, go out and play baseball and let his play speak for him.
