JACKIE ROBINSON

JACKIE ROBINSON, (1919 -1972) was a renowned baseball star who broke the color barrier when he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947 and became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball.

Jackie Robinson was the first African American inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. He received that honor in 1962, and in 1984 President Reagan awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Narration:

The first African American major league baseball player. His name – Jackie Robinson.

Born in Georgia in 1919, Jack Roosevelt Robinson always excelled in sports.

When Robinson attended UCLA, he became the first student to win varsity letters in four sports.

In 1945 Jackie Robinson accepted an offer from the Kansas City Monarchs to play professional baseball in the Negro leagues. By 1947 he joined the Dodgers and broke the color barrier when he became the first African American to play in the major leagues.

Although Robinson contended with extreme prejudice throughout his major league baseball career. He courageously stayed above the fray, received numerous awards and honors, and made significant contributions to the civil rights movement.

Jackie Robinson – A Great American

Credits: Editor: Stacy T. Holmes, ACE, Narrator: Steve Schy, Music: PartnersinRhyme.com, Digital Collection: Library of Congress, Copyright: CBN Communications