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In 1947, Jackie Roosevelt Robinson, the grandson of a slave, shattered baseball’s "color barrier" by becoming the first African-American to play in the major leagues in the 20th century.
At a time when segregation still prevailed in much of the United States, Jackie braved insults, bean balls, and death threats to become one of baseball’s greatest players. Through his courage and dignity, he helped pave the way for the civil rights movement and brought the American Dream within reach of millions of black Americans.
This book tells the story of Jackie’s life from his battles with prejudice as a youth to his emergence as a tireless champion of racial justice after his retirement from baseball. It also tells of the key people who nurtured and supported him in difficult times: his mother, Mallie; his wife, Rachel; and Brooklyn Dodgers president Branch Rickey, the man who was determined to integrate the "national pastime."
But it was Jackie alone who "carried the hopes of millions" on his broad shoulders. In the words of all-time home run champion Hank Aaron, "He gave us our dreams."
Guided Reading Level: L
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