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Summary
Summary
Jackie Robinson is one of the most revered public figures of the twentieth century. He is remembered for both his athletic prowess and his strong personal character. The world knows him as the man who crossed baseball's color line, but there is much more to his legacy. At the conclusion of his baseball career, Robinson continued in his pursuit of social progress through his work as a writer. Beyond Home Plate, an anthology of Jackie Robinson's columns in the New York Post and the New York Amsterdam News, offers fresh insight into the Hall of Famer's life and work following his historic years on the baseball diamond.
Robinson's syndicated newspaper columns afforded him the opportunity to provide rich social commentary while simultaneously exploring his own life and experiences. He was free to write about any subject of his choosing, and he took full advantage of this license, speaking his mind about everything from playing Santa to confronting racism in the Red Sox nation, from loving his wife Rachel to despising Barry Goldwater, from complaining about Cassius Clay's verbosity to teaching Little Leaguers how to lose well.
Robinson wrote to prod and provoke, inflame and infuriate, and sway and persuade. With their pointed opinions, his columns reveal that the mature Robinson was a truly American prophet, a civil rights leader in his own right, furious with racial injustice and committed to securing first class citizenship for all. These fascinating columns also depict Robinson as an indebted son, a devoted husband, a tenderhearted father, and a hardworking community leader. Robinson believed that his life after his baseball career was far more important than all of his baseball exploits. Beyond Home Plate shows why he believed this so fervently.
Author Notes
Michael Long is the author and editor of several books on politics, religion, and civil rights. He is the author, most recently, of Martin Luther King, Jr., Homosexuality, and the Early Gay Rights Movement.
Reviews (2)
Choice Review
Long's anthology includes an engrossing collection of syndicated newspaper articles Jackie Robinson wrote following his retirement. Long organizes Robinson's articles into five broad categories, including "On Baseball and Golf" and "On Civil Rights." Additionally, Long wisely adds context to each of Robinson's articles in order to help readers understand and appreciate the articles' content. Through those articles, Long uses Robinson's own words to preserve and highlight the baseball legend's legacy beyond the baseball diamond. Robinson's articles showcase his outspoken, thoughtful views on topics such as the lack of African American managers in Major League baseball, interracial marriages, civil rights, and presidential politics. Several touching articles offer insight into Robinson's family life and his deep love for his wife Rachel and their three children. Most significantly, the articles prove that Robinson defies--and continues to defy--simple political classification as a Republican or a Democrat. Robinson deliberately navigated between the two political parties and voiced support for positions that fell throughout the political spectrum. As Long's valuable anthology shows, Robinson's legacy goes beyond his role in integrating Major League baseball in the 20th century. Summing Up: Recommended. All readership levels. C. M. Smith Cabrini College
Library Journal Review
Drawing almost entirely from the legendary ballplayer's columns in the New York Post and New York Amsterdam News that spanned the volatile years from 1959 to 1968, Long (musicology, SUNY at Buffalo) offers a terrific, even invaluable collection. Those syndicated columns, and a sprinkling of earlier pieces, offer the ex-Brooklyn Dodger great's often astute reflections on a broad range of issues pertaining to civil rights, foreign affairs, and, of course, baseball. Robinson expressed great affection for the man who signed him to his first major league contract, Branch Rickey; disputed Bill Veeck's assertion that the sport's first black major leaguer in the 20th century would have to rein himself in to serve as a coach or a manager; and lauded "the kind of courage" displayed by teammate Pee Wee Reese amid racial epithets. Robinson referred to his wife, Rachel, as an equal partner, deemed Martin Luther King Jr. the greatest leader of the century, and extolled nonviolent activists, while admitting that he would be unable to turn his cheek if threatened with violence. Movingly, Robinson insisted that even well-known, comfortable African Americans should never be altogether comfortable "until the most underprivileged Negro enjoys his rights as a free man." Verdict Highly recommended.-Robert C. Cottrell, California State Univ., Chico (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments | p. xi |
Introduction: Keeping the Legacy Straight | p. xv |
1 On Baseball and Golf | p. 1 |
2 On Family and Friends | p. 42 |
3 On Civil Rights | p. 65 |
4 On Peace with Justice | p. 102 |
5 On Politics with Principles | p. 126 |
Index | p. 155 |