Branch Rickey Changed the World

Jackie Robinson

           Today marks what would have been Jackie Robinson's 94th Birthday. For those who may not know Jackie Robinson, he was the first African-American professional baseball player. He broke a seemingly insurmountable color barrier at the time and opened the door for other athletes of color to follow in his footsteps. It seems as though most people know of Jackie Robinson, but not many people know of the man who signed him to the Brooklyn Dodgers roster: Branch Rickey.

Rickey signing Robinson

            In my opinion, without Branch Rickey, the extensive world of sports in which us Americans embrace so greatly would simply not be close to what it is. At the time,  "any links with blacks would mark [baseball] as beyond the pale. Moreover, from the Jim Crow era down to the 1930s it would probably have been impossible to have integrated a Major League team without inspiring a violent backlash, even in many northern cities, and no one was willing to take the risk," (Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball). 

          
         Out of fear, baseball stayed segregated, until Branch Rickey's signing. Without his incredibly brave decision, who is to predict what kind of sports world we would embrace today? I find it an incredible American ideal to stick to the social norm and not step outside of one's boundaries. As shown though with Rickey's signing of Jackie Robinson, bravery can have incredible benefits for everyone. In this case, changing not only baseball, but the world of sports forever while providing a foundation of racial equality to be built on up until today. 

         What do you think the sports world would be like without Branch Rickey? Comment below with your thoughts!