It’s no question that racism has been one of the worst things about American culture, as it has been very prevalent since the country has been established. One of the more pressing historical instances of racism in America was when Major League Baseball (MLB) had a color barrier in American baseball that excluded Black players and other nonwhite people from Major League Baseball and its affiliated Minor Leagues until 1947. In what was simply segregation of Black people and other nonwhite people from “Organized Baseball” (the major and minor leagues), there was a term known as the "gentleman’s agreement.” The “gentleman’s agreement” lasted from the 19th century until 1946, although the leaders of “Organized Baseball” rarely admitted its existence. There was a separate league for Black people and some latino players called the “Negro leagues.” The Negro leagues were active between 1920 and 1951.   

The segregation of nonwhite players continued to be prevalent, until Jackie Robinson became the first Black player to be signed by an MLB team. He was signed by Brooklyn Dodgers GM Branch Rickey, to a minor league contract in 1945. He had his historic major league debut on April 15, 1947, at Ebbets Field. It was a difficult season, to say the least. Initially, some of his Dodger teammates expressed dissent about his presence, he experienced racist behavior from his own teammates, he got hate mail, and even threats of violence. On the field, he was verbally and physically abused by the opposing team. No matter, Robinson prevailed. He led the Dodgers to their first National League pennant since 1941. Jackie Robinson is an American icon, he diverted his anger and controlled his temper, he overcame, on the field and against bigotry. 

Even though the impact of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier was tremendous, and other Black players would go on to become legends in the MLB, racism is still common in this day and age. One of the most persistent forms of racism in the MLB in recent years has come from fans at Fenway Park in Boston. The most notable account of this behavior was directed at former Baltimore Oriole Adam Jones, who is Black, said someone in the crowd threw a bag of peanuts during a game. He said he had been the subject of racist heckling in Boston's ballpark before, but this was one of the worst cases of fan abuse he had heard in his 12-year career. Jones said he was "called the N-word a handful of times.” "It's unfortunate that people need to resort to those types of epithets to degrade another human being," Jones said. There was even a player on my baseball team that has dealt with this type of behavior. During my sophomore year of high school, a Black teammate of mine on the baseball team was called the N-word while he was on first base, it should be noted that the opposing was an all white team and our team had a few people of a different race. That instance of racism led to the ejection of my other teammate who was on second base and heard the ordeal, and he promptly shoved the racist kid to the ground, who was also ejected. Obviously, violence shouldn’t be the answer to racism; but I find it really empowering that a white person was willing to be ejected, in order to stand up for our teammate… that’s what’s amazing about being a part of a team.
 
Sports are a universal outlet for all that goes on in our lives, and racism should not be associated with such an amazing thing. Sports  should bring us all together… not tear us apart. Baseball and other sports are great ways to unite us all, and it’s such a shame that such racism is associated with “America’s Pastime.” 

“Adam Jones Taunted by Racial Slurs during Orioles Game at Fenway Park.” RSN, 2 May 2017, www.nbcsports.com/washington/baltimore-orioles/adam-jones-taunted-racial-slurs-during-orioles-game-fenway-park. 

“African-American Baseball | History Detectives.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/feature/african-american-baseball/. 

Helgeland, Brian, and Thomas Tull. 42, 2013. 

Hylton, J. Gordon. “American Civil Rights Laws and the Legacy of Jackie Robinson.” Marquette Sports Law Review, vol. 8, no. 2, ser. 9, 1998. 9.