Interview with Cassidy Lent
Reference Librarian of the Giamatti Research Center at the Baseball Hall of Fame
How did Jackie Robinson affect not only sports, but the American Civil Rights movement?
Robinson was a vocal participant in both baseball and the civil rights movement. Once he was able to express his views while playing for the Dodgers, he did. He continued to be a vocal and active participant after retiring from baseball. He wrote columns, did interviews, went on a speaking tour for the NAACP, as well as just being there for others who were going through a similar situation that he went through and those who were also active in the civil right movement. He also spoke with, and tried to work with, political and civil rights leaders. All of his work affected the civil rights movement.
What was the biggest impact Jackie Robinson had on sports and the color barrier?
His biggest impact was breaking the color barrier formed in the late 1800s in baseball. However, many believe that baseball is just American culture on a smaller scale. What was happening on the field was starting to happen in the general society of America. While it took a long time for all teams to become integrated, and even longer Robinson had something to do with that.
Which event did Jackie Robinson have the biggest impact on in the Civil-Rights movement?
I’m not sure there is one single event that you can point to and say, “Yup, Jackie Robinson had the biggest impact on this event.” However, he had his hand in quite a few events, especially the grassroots movements. One such was a sit-in held in North Carolina by four college students that would grow to include many cities in five states. These students were arrested and refused bail, but did let someone get out to go find Jackie Robinson for help. They choose Robinson because he was someone they looked up to and who was less political than Dr. King, who hadn’t yet gotten involved in the sit-ins in any way. Robinson would go on to help raise funds to help the students in their cause. This was the sort of thing that he did throughout the movement.
How did Jackie Robinson influence the way America perceived African-Americans?
I’m not sure he did influence the way America perceived African-Americans. I think a large number of people believed what they had always been told and that was that black Americans couldn’t do anything as well as their white counterparts. That included baseball. Once Robinson proved that that wasn’t the case, they changed their minds. However, there were a large number of white Americans who wouldn’t change their perceptions on African-Americans and Robinson wasn’t going to do it.
What changes in society do we still see today as a result of Jackie Robinson?
There are the changes in baseball, with African-American ballplayers and managers, but there are still very few in the front offices, which would have greatly disappointed him, I think. All the other aspects of the civil rights movement that he was involved, grassroots movements, desegregation, are all still here today and he had something to do with that.
What were the most significant awards that Jackie received as a result of his leadership or legacy?
Robinson has been awarded many honors over the years, some of them occurring after his death. Specifically to what he did in regards to his leadership and legacy, he was awarded the NAACP’s Springarn Medal in 1956, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984, and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2005
What are some examples of Robinson's Leadership?
To start with, it started with proving himself to his teammates on the Dodgers. He proved to them that he was there to play and play to win, not to start a fight. He also helped other African-American ballplayers who were going through similar situations. He offered them advice about keeping level-headed and ignoring what was said to them because, even though he had integrated baseball again, there were still many that didn’t think it was right. He also showed his leadership in his work as a civil rights activist. His work with different groups, including the NAACP, allowed him to continue the fight for equal rights. The different positions he held gave him the opportunity to continue being a leader for this group of people. He had the opportunity to speak out and, hopefully, be heard more than others would have.
What other historical events contributed to his success? What aspects where a challenge to overcome?
I think Robinson came about in somewhat of a perfect storm of opportunity. On the baseball field, he was successful because he was strong and could play. Off the field, the civil rights movement was happening, with or without him. He chose to get involved, which may have helped the movement. He was successful in this pursuit because he was strong, smart, and compassionate. He always had to overcome prejudices against him, whether it was for his race or that people didn’t feel he was qualified to help.
What was it about Jackie Robinson that made him succeed where so many others had unable to bring African-American's their rights?
I believe that Robinson came about at a perfect time in our country where people were already trying to make segregation a thing of the past. He sort of entered into a perfect storm of opportunity to help bring African-Americans the same rights as others in this country. I also believe that it strongly helped his case that he was something of a star, definitely in the African-American community, but also to the general American public.
What was Branch Rickey's motivation to select a black onto his team and what was it about Robinson that caught his attention?
I believe there are a couple of different reasons Mr. Rickey decided to find a black player for his team. One was that he didn’t believe or agree with the “gentlemen’s agreement” to not sign black players. He felt that the agreement had stood for more than long enough and decided to break it. There is a story about how he witnessed segregation as a young man and how it had never sat well with him, which could be the reason behind why he did it. However, he also wanted to win and he knew there were plenty of players in the Negro Leagues that were more than competent to play in the Major Leagues. What caught his attention in regards to Robinson was that he felt he had the whole package with him. Robinson was a good player, but not the best in the Negro Leagues. He had a passion and a fight in him against segregation that Rickey liked. Robinson was known somewhat as a hot-head, but not overly so, and wasn’t known for any negative off the field behavior. Rickey believed Robinson had the character and the determination to handle the pressure he was bound to face, but also to not fight or talk back.
Robinson was a vocal participant in both baseball and the civil rights movement. Once he was able to express his views while playing for the Dodgers, he did. He continued to be a vocal and active participant after retiring from baseball. He wrote columns, did interviews, went on a speaking tour for the NAACP, as well as just being there for others who were going through a similar situation that he went through and those who were also active in the civil right movement. He also spoke with, and tried to work with, political and civil rights leaders. All of his work affected the civil rights movement.
What was the biggest impact Jackie Robinson had on sports and the color barrier?
His biggest impact was breaking the color barrier formed in the late 1800s in baseball. However, many believe that baseball is just American culture on a smaller scale. What was happening on the field was starting to happen in the general society of America. While it took a long time for all teams to become integrated, and even longer Robinson had something to do with that.
Which event did Jackie Robinson have the biggest impact on in the Civil-Rights movement?
I’m not sure there is one single event that you can point to and say, “Yup, Jackie Robinson had the biggest impact on this event.” However, he had his hand in quite a few events, especially the grassroots movements. One such was a sit-in held in North Carolina by four college students that would grow to include many cities in five states. These students were arrested and refused bail, but did let someone get out to go find Jackie Robinson for help. They choose Robinson because he was someone they looked up to and who was less political than Dr. King, who hadn’t yet gotten involved in the sit-ins in any way. Robinson would go on to help raise funds to help the students in their cause. This was the sort of thing that he did throughout the movement.
How did Jackie Robinson influence the way America perceived African-Americans?
I’m not sure he did influence the way America perceived African-Americans. I think a large number of people believed what they had always been told and that was that black Americans couldn’t do anything as well as their white counterparts. That included baseball. Once Robinson proved that that wasn’t the case, they changed their minds. However, there were a large number of white Americans who wouldn’t change their perceptions on African-Americans and Robinson wasn’t going to do it.
What changes in society do we still see today as a result of Jackie Robinson?
There are the changes in baseball, with African-American ballplayers and managers, but there are still very few in the front offices, which would have greatly disappointed him, I think. All the other aspects of the civil rights movement that he was involved, grassroots movements, desegregation, are all still here today and he had something to do with that.
What were the most significant awards that Jackie received as a result of his leadership or legacy?
Robinson has been awarded many honors over the years, some of them occurring after his death. Specifically to what he did in regards to his leadership and legacy, he was awarded the NAACP’s Springarn Medal in 1956, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984, and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2005
What are some examples of Robinson's Leadership?
To start with, it started with proving himself to his teammates on the Dodgers. He proved to them that he was there to play and play to win, not to start a fight. He also helped other African-American ballplayers who were going through similar situations. He offered them advice about keeping level-headed and ignoring what was said to them because, even though he had integrated baseball again, there were still many that didn’t think it was right. He also showed his leadership in his work as a civil rights activist. His work with different groups, including the NAACP, allowed him to continue the fight for equal rights. The different positions he held gave him the opportunity to continue being a leader for this group of people. He had the opportunity to speak out and, hopefully, be heard more than others would have.
What other historical events contributed to his success? What aspects where a challenge to overcome?
I think Robinson came about in somewhat of a perfect storm of opportunity. On the baseball field, he was successful because he was strong and could play. Off the field, the civil rights movement was happening, with or without him. He chose to get involved, which may have helped the movement. He was successful in this pursuit because he was strong, smart, and compassionate. He always had to overcome prejudices against him, whether it was for his race or that people didn’t feel he was qualified to help.
What was it about Jackie Robinson that made him succeed where so many others had unable to bring African-American's their rights?
I believe that Robinson came about at a perfect time in our country where people were already trying to make segregation a thing of the past. He sort of entered into a perfect storm of opportunity to help bring African-Americans the same rights as others in this country. I also believe that it strongly helped his case that he was something of a star, definitely in the African-American community, but also to the general American public.
What was Branch Rickey's motivation to select a black onto his team and what was it about Robinson that caught his attention?
I believe there are a couple of different reasons Mr. Rickey decided to find a black player for his team. One was that he didn’t believe or agree with the “gentlemen’s agreement” to not sign black players. He felt that the agreement had stood for more than long enough and decided to break it. There is a story about how he witnessed segregation as a young man and how it had never sat well with him, which could be the reason behind why he did it. However, he also wanted to win and he knew there were plenty of players in the Negro Leagues that were more than competent to play in the Major Leagues. What caught his attention in regards to Robinson was that he felt he had the whole package with him. Robinson was a good player, but not the best in the Negro Leagues. He had a passion and a fight in him against segregation that Rickey liked. Robinson was known somewhat as a hot-head, but not overly so, and wasn’t known for any negative off the field behavior. Rickey believed Robinson had the character and the determination to handle the pressure he was bound to face, but also to not fight or talk back.