Jackie Robinson
The first African-American Player
in Major League Baseball
Created by Janice Pickett
Bibb County Public Schools, 2006
Jackie Robinson
• He was born on January 31, 1919 near
Cario, Georgia.
• In May, 1920 he moved to California with
his mother.
What did the Robinsons find in
California?
• The public pool was open only one day a
week to black people.
• In the movie theaters, blacks had to sit
separately from the whites. Blacks had to
sit in the balcony.
• Some people cursed the Robinsons and
threw rocks at them.
What did Jackie like to do?
• Jackie loved to play games and sports. He
liked to win.
What did Jackie do when he got
older?
• In high school Jackie Robinson starred in
track and field, football, basketball, and
baseball. At the University of California at
Los Angeles (UCLA) he was a football
hero.
Jackie is a soldier.
• World War II started in 1941.
• Jackie was drafted into the army in 1942.
Was the Army fair to black men
when Jackie was a soldier?
• Jackie could not be on the army baseball
team because he was black.
• The army restaurant had a separate
sections for black and white soldiers.
• Black soldier were turned down when they
first applied to officers school.
• Sometimes black soldier were told to go to
the back of the bus.
Jackie and the Army
• In August 1944, Jackie Robinson was
court-martialed – put on trial by the armyfor not showing respect to an officer.
• He was judged to be innocent because he
had not broken any rules.
• He decided to leave the Army because he
did not think they were fair.
Professional Baseball
• In 1945, professional baseball was a
segregated sport. Black men played on
black teams and white men played on
white teams.
• Jackie Robinson played shortstop for the
Kansas City Monarchs, a Negro League.
• He was a good player. He could hit the ball
and run fast.
Brooklyn Dodgers
• The Brooklyn Dodgers was a white team.
•
• The president of the Dodgers wanted
baseball teams that were open to all good
players, black and white.
• The president asked Jackie Robinson to
play for the Dodgers.
Do not fight back!
• The president told Jackie that he could
expect trouble. But he wanted a ballplayer
who would not fight back.
Jackie’s Trouble
• Jackie could not stay in the same hotels
as his white teammates.
• He could not eat in the same restaurants.
• Some ballplayers wanted to stop playing.
• Some ballplayers insulted and kicked
Jackie.
• Nobody thought blacks and whites could
play together.
Jackie Wins
• Jackie Robinson won the Rookie of the
Year for being the best first year player in
the major league in 1947.
• In 1949 he was selected as the Most
Valuable Player in the National League.
The Best Award
• Jackie Robinson was the first African –
American inducted into baseball’s Hall of
Fame.
Equal Rights
• Jackie Robinson retired from baseball but
worked hard to get equal rights for AfricanAmericans. His playing baseball was the
important 1st step.
Review
• Watch and listen.
Review
• Who was the first black baseball player?
•Jackie Robinson
Review
• True or False
• A black baseball player helped the civil
rights movement get started.
•True