THESIS
In 1947, the MLB color barrier was broken by Jackie Robinson, an African American baseball player, when he signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers, by doing this he changed the world for colored people by giving them an equal chance to make it into the Major Leagues as anyone else. This makes him a frontier because he helped people realize how racism and segragation was negativly affecting the country. He also led to the integration of the Major Leagues with his 10 year career with the Brooklyn Dodgers. His outsoken activism in his later years helped set the stage for the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement
“He was the greatest competitor I have ever seen.” “There was never a man in the game who could put mind and muscle together quicker than Jackie Robinson.” “Jackie, we've got no army. There's virtually nobody on our side.
~ Branch Rickey, ex-General Manager Brooklyn Dodgers
"Jackie Robinson may have had more influence on the integration of sports than any other athlete in history. When he began playing with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, he broke the color line in professional baseball and paved the way for the entry of black players into all professional sports. Monte Irvin, a black baseball player who came into the major leagues soon after Robinson, was quoted in The New York Times Book of Sports Legends as saying, "Jackie Robinson opened the door of baseball to all men."
~ Gale In Context: Biography
"Branch wanted Jackie because he knew Jackie had absolutely fierce pride and determination."
- Harvey Frommer's book Rickey & Robinson: The Men Who Broke Baseball's Color Barrier,