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MLB’s second annual civil rights game weekend
shoulda been there
It goes without saying that in American society, professional sports are both a reflection of, and an escape from the world around us. When Jackie Robinson broke Major League’s Baseball’s color barrier over 60 years ago, he not only changed the social landscape of America’s favorite pastime, he forever changed the culture. In honor of the Civil Rights Movement and the brave individuals who served as its leaders and ambassadors, MLB held their second annual Civil Rights Game at AutoZone Park in Memphis, Tenn., home of the National Civil Rights Museum.
The commemorative weekend opened with a roundt-able discussion entitled “Baseball and Civil Rights,” which included such notables as: Martin Luther King III; Hall of Famer Hank Aaron; Chicago White Sox general manager, Ken Williams; New York Mets general manager, Omar Minaya; Sharon Robinson, daughter of Jackie Robinson; and Ambassador Attallah Shabazz, daughter of Malcolm X. The dialogue highlighted correlations between sports and the minority communities and emphasized the declining number of black baseball players.
“I’ll be honest with you, I’m less concerned about young, inner-city African American kids playing baseball than I am about the murder rate ... [and] the amount of young men in their teens and 20s going to jail,” said Williams, whose White Sox fell to Minaya’s Mets 3-2 in Saturday’s game.
The weekend also included the presentation of Beacon Awards to Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, film legend Ruby Dee and the late John H. Johnson. VP of Baseball Operations Jimmie Lee Solomon, the man behind the Civil Rights Game, says he is confident the game and the weekend will continue to create awareness and bring about change beyond the diamond. –gavin philip godfrey
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