Jackie Robinson: Race, Sports and the American Dream - A Literature Review

Running Head: LITERATURE REVIEW
LITERATURE REVIEW
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Author Note:

1
LITERATURE REVIEW
Racism in America has a long drawn history since the independence in 17761. However,
the Civil War of 1861 was succeeded to abolish slavery but the practice of racial segregation was
still prevalent until 1968 when the Civil Rights Act was legalised2. However, the movement was
suppressed in many ways by the government and the Caucasian citizens. In response to that this
the book ‘Jackie Robinson- Race, Sports and the American Dream’ reflects the journey of the
famous baseball player Jackie Robinson who was not fair in complexion and because of that he
had to face a series of life threats and humiliation3. Despite all these obstacles he stood firmly
and changed the perception of American psyche about racial segregation. Therefore, the purpose
of this report is to put focus on the depth of racial discrimination in American Society during
1950s and how far people like Jackie Robinson retaliated against this prejudice.
It can be stated that editors Joseph Dorinson and Joram Warmund were trying to depict a
social picturesque of racial prevalence in America during the 1950s4. It is imperative to
understand that idea of racism and the discourses of apartheid in America. In US blacks are
dealing with discriminations in terms of slavery, violence, symbol as well as state sponsorship5.
In this context it is also important to keep in mind of the fact that in 2009 US got its first
African- American President, namely Barack Obama6. Therefore, the intensity and relevance of
racism is very significant. In this regard, the book on Jackie Robinson illustrates the obstructions
1 Fredrickson, George M. Racism: A short history. Princeton University Press, 2015.
2 Araújo, Marta, and Silvia R. Maeso. Eurocentrism, racism and knowledge: debates on history and power in
Europe and the Americas. Springer, 2015.
3 Witherell, Carol S. "Exploring the Lingering Currency of Racism. A Book Review of Trayvon Martin, Race, and
American Justice: Writing Wrong." Democracy and Education 23.2 (2015): 11.
4 Dorinson J Warmund, Jackie Robinson: Race, Sports And The American Dream. Routledge 2015
5 Zigerell, L. J. "Distinguishing racism from ideology: A methodological inquiry." Political Research Quarterly 68.3
(2015): 521-536.
6 Ladson-Billings, Gloria, and William F. Tate IV. "Toward a critical race theory of education." Critical race theory
in education. Routledge, 2016. 21-41.

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LITERATURE REVIEW
that he faced in his professional career and how did he manage to change the perspective of
sports as well as society.
Apparently the book can be considered as a biography on Jackie Robinson. He was a US
born Afro- American legendary professional baseball player who was the first player to play in
Major League Baseball (MLB). Scouted by Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947 Jackie broke the colour
segregation in professional baseball in US and became the first afro player to get selected in
MLB7. However, before MLB career and during the professional career as well Jackie was facing
enormous humiliation and threats despite of his outstanding performances. The entire struggling
life of Jackie Robinson for achieving equality has been addressed in the books which not only
reflects his fight against Racism but also provides a gross idea about the humiliation and
discrimination that the black people were facing in US8. The audacious attitude of Jackie
Robinson helped him to get the honour that he deserved and at the same time led the way
towards the victory over Racism.
It must be acknowledged that no discussion is perfect and always there is a possibility of
biasness. There is no question about the detailed and informative arguments that were mentioned
in the book indicating anti racist ideas. However, while scrutinizing the book a number of
partialities are being figured out exhibiting the inclination towards leftist ideology or against
white supremacy. For an instance, Joseph Dorinson, one of the editors of the book had a leftist
influence because his parents were the supporters of left wing politics. In fact, the Red Scare
movement associated with radical left communism had a deep effect on him. On the other hand,
Joram Warmund was a victim of the World War II Holocaust and had a relation with the Zionist
7 Khan, Abraham Iqbal. "Michael Sam, Jackie Robinson, and the politics of respectability." Communication &
Sport5.3 (2017): 331-351.
8 Dorinson J Warmund, Jackie Robinson: Race, Sports And The American Dream. Routledge 2015