There's not an American in this country free until every one of us is free.
Jackie RobinsonRead
The black press, some liberal sportswriters, and even a few politicians were banging away at those Jim Crow barriers in baseball. I never expected the walls to come tumbling down in my lifetime.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Jackie Robinson reflects on the struggle against racial barriers in baseball and his skepticism about immediate change.
In this quote, Jackie Robinson acknowledges the persistent efforts of various groups, including the black press and liberal sportswriters, to dismantle the Jim Crow barriers in baseball, which represented broader racial segregation in America. He expresses a poignant realization that while these efforts were significant, he never thought he would see the complete breakdown of these barriers within his own lifetime, highlighting both the struggle for civil rights and the slow pace of social change.
Themes
RaceBaseballBarriersChangeCourage
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech at a civil rights rally.
More from Jackie Robinson
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My problem was my inability to spend much time at home. I thought my family was secure, so I went running around everyplace else. I guess I had more of an effect on other people's kids than I did my own.
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I had no future with the Dodgers, because I was too closely identified with Branch Rickey. After the club was taken over by Walter O'Malley, you couldn't even mention Mr. Rickey's name in front of him. I considered Mr. Rickey the greatest human being I had ever known.
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The colonel replied that he didn't care how my men had got the job done. He was happy that it had been accomplished. He said that, obviously, no matter how much or how little I knew technically, I was able to get the best out of people I worked with.
Jackie RobinsonRead
When I look back at what I had to go through in black baseball, I can only marvel at the many black players who stuck it out for years in the Jim Crow leagues because they had nowhere else to go.
Jackie RobinsonRead
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