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When the baseball season opened on April 1, 1997, many special events were held to honor Jackie Robinson. Both major and minor league players and major league umpires wore "Breaking Barriers" arm patches in his honor. They wore the patches all season long. Many Little League, high school, and college teams wore the patches the following season, too. This is just one way people are honoring the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first year in major league baseball.

Jackie Robinson was, and still is a true American hero. Without Jackie Robinson's courage, African-American athletes might still not play with white athletes. Imagine -- there would be no Michael Jordan in basketball, no Tiger Woods in golf, no Deion Sanders in both baseball and football. Although Jackie Robinson died in 1972, when he was just 53 years old, the things he did in his life helped from Jackie Robinson's "breaking the barrier."

Jack Roosevelt Robinson grew up in Pasadena, California, in the 1930s. At that time, the youth club in his neighborhood allowed him to play there only one day a week because of the color of his skin. Nevertheless, Jackie Robinson practiced his sports whenever and wherever he could. By the time he was in high school he was playing on the basketball, baseball, football, and track teams. He did the same when he attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

At that time only white athletes were allowed to play major league baseball. Then, on April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson, wearing a Brooklyn Dodgers uniform, stepped onto the baseball diamond with his white teammates. He had to stand quietly as fans and others yelled names at him. Some of the players even signed petitions so they wouldn't have to play with him.

Jackie Robinson knew that what he started out to do wasn't going to be easy. The man who hired him for the job, Branch Rickey, told him to expect trouble. Branch Rickey believed that everyone, no matter what color their skin was, should have a chance to play on a major league team if they were good enough. He knew Jackie Robinson was good enough. He also believed that Jackie Robinson had the courage and strength to succeed.

Jackie Robinson was an outstanding player when he played for the Kansas City Monarchs, a Negro League ball club. Although he never thought of himself as the best player on that team, he knew when he was asked to join the Dodgers that he would be opening the door for all other African-American athletes. They would have the chance to play on any team. Jackie Robinson took his new job very seriously.

To make it easier for other African Americans to follow him into the major leagues, Jackie Robinson decided not to show he was angry about the terrible things people said to him. Instead, he quietly showed them what a good player he was. Soon people saw him as one of the most valuable pla yers on the Dodgers, and other African Americans were allowed to join the major leagues. Besides being an excellent player, Jackie Robinson had attended college and was also a very good speaker. He was an excellent role model for many young African Americans as they were growing up.

After he died, his wife Rachel set up the Jackie Robinson Foundation to help educate underprivileged children. As a special part of the 50th anniversary year, a million dollars has been pledged to the foundation that bears his name.

The United States Mint began selling Jackie Robinson gold and silver commemorative coins in July, 1997. While attending major league games during the 1997 season, fans saw videos about Jackie Robinson's life and important contributions he made to the game of baseball. The Smithsonian Institution had a four-part lecture series, and the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, featured an exhibit called "The Pride and the Passion: The African-American Basebal l Experience."

Jackie Robinson's grandson, Jesse Simms is an athlete too. He has been asked to begin his college football career at UCLA, the same university his grandfather and grandmother attended. Thanks to his grandfather, no one will question whether or not Jesse should play because of the color of his skin.

Questions to Talk About

• Why is it important to celebrate Jackie Robinson's baseball career?
• What qualities make Jackie Robinson a good role model for others?
• How are Americans working today to improve race and cultural relationships?

To share additional stories with your classroom, take a look at Harcourt School Publisher's archive of NewsBreaks.

This article presented by Harcourt School Publishers, a Harcourt Classroom Education Company