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Our world has come a long way, because of historical figures who conquered the word impossible. Racism and segregation would be a major issuer but black historical figures took a stand against it unintentionally. A law and idea that was permanently encoded in the minds of society seemed impossible to change. Jackie Robinson, Ernie Davis, and Rosa Parks opposed segregation and racism by triumphing over what was once impossible. Jackie Robinson broke down the segregation barrier that bordered sports. Athletes of color were not allowed to compete in major league sports.
Colored men who wanted to play baseball were sent to Negro Leagues and never given a chance to compete in Major League Baseball. Athletes in the Negro Leagues were considered not good enough to play in Major League Baseball and never given a chance too. Although Jackie Robinson proved that thought wrong when he stepped out on that diamond field. Jackie Robinson became the first African Americans to play in Major League Baseball in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when the Brooklyn Dodgers started him at first base on April 15, 1947.
As the first major league am to play a black man the Dodgers ended racial segregation. The example of Robinsons character and unquestionable talent challenged the traditional basis of segregation, which then marked many other aspects of American life, and contributed significantly to the Civil Rights Movement. Jackie Robinson did not seek out to give an outlet for all black athletes to come or contribute to the Civil Rights Movement. Jackie Robinson just wanted to prove that he was the best baseball player in the world.
Robinson had an altruistic motive in sportsmanship and competitiveness. Aside from changing the world of sports for black men, Jackie Robinson had an exceptional baseball career. Over ten seasons, Robinson played in six World Series and contributed to the Dodgers 1955 World Series Championship. The MI_B also created a day called Jackie Robinson Day where every player wears the number 42 on their jersey. Jackie Robinson opened up opportunity for black men to compete in sports. It was impossible for a colored man to compete in a white man game and overcome the hate from crowds and opponents.
Jackie Robinson endured all the pain ND just played the game he loved to overcome the impossible. Jackie Robinson never gave up on being the best baseball player regardless on all the obstacles, and the end result speaks for itself. Jackie Robinson opened the gate for young athletes In not only baseball but other sports too. Football was always considered a white man sport and was like a religion for white fans. Ernie Davis was a young high school player who thought his football career was over after he graduated. An offer from Syracuse changed Ernie Davit’s life, for now he was starting running back.
Ernie Davis aspired to be the best running back he could, and his parents were proud that a college education came with it. Syracuse only had 3 black students attending and all of them played for the football team. At away games , Ernie Davis discovered racism at its worst. The colored players on Syracuse were not given the same luxuries as the white players. Ernie Davis was forced to sleep in dirty hotel rooms, use disgusting restrooms, and sleep on cold floors. Everyday white opposing fans would send death threats and throw trash at Davis before, during and after games.
Ernie Davis was an all tar player, but he was treated like an enemy of the world. Ernie Davis did not ask to fight the black and white war, he was just a ball player trying to see his capability. Davis proved that hard work pays off because he lead his team to an NCAA Championship and MAP honors. The young athlete was named the first black player to be awarded the Hessian trophy, which is a high individual honor in college football. Ernie Davis was picked up by the NFG Cleveland Browns and ready to make his debut at the professional level. A tragedy emerged when Ernie Davis was diagnosed with Leukemia at age 23.
Ernie Davis knew he would never be able to play a game of professional football and was upset his dream would never come true. Davis paved the way for all upcoming young black football players, and made an impossible mission possible for anyone. What once started as a kid following his dream, became a kid changing the world of football with his talent. Ernie Davis died without ever playing a minute of professional football, but he conquered racism in the sport itself. John F. Kennedy spoke at Inkier Davit’s funeral and told the story of an American hero battling the evil of racism that inhabited the game of oddball.
Jackie Robinson and Ernie Davis changed the racism within the world of sports, but a woman named Rosa Parks fought segregation with a simple gesture. Rosa Parks changed the world by refusing to give up her seat on the bus. Rosa Parks did not set out to make a difference and go against the law. Rosa parks was just an elderly woman who had pain in her feet. Rosa park’s motive was to avoid feeling pain, and refused to move from her good seat. A white man did not see the age difference, rather he saw the difference in skin color. The situation became a fight against the law, racist minds, and aggregation.
Rosa Parks just wanted to influence the logic of having common courtesy for the elderly. An altruistic heart lead to changing the perspective of the many who discriminated. The spark that set off the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Rosa Parks gave the NAACP organization the incident it needed to move in on segregation. Rosa parks headed the youth division at the NAACP and received the Congressional Medal of Honor. Rosa Parks’ act of defiance became important symbols of the modern Civil Rights Movement. She became an international icon of resistance to racial segregation .
She worked tit with civil rights leaders Edgar Nixon who was president of the local chapter of the NAACP; and Martin Luther King. There is no doubt Rosa Parks is one our country’s most important historical figures. If same events were to occur on a bus in our society today, the tables would be turned. For an example the younger gentlemen would offer his seat up for the elderly woman oppose to sending her to the back of the bus. Rosa Parks had given people an altruistic point of view on people different. Treating people with kindness and the way you Want to be treated is the lesson taken.