The Movie 42 Essay

Words: 505
Pages: 3

The movie 42 recounts the success of Jackie Robinson in the baseball league. In 1947 Robinson made history when he changed the face of major league baseball by breaking the color barrier on the opening day for the Brooklyn dodgers. The movie 42 highlights post war after World War II, black Americans fought and died for their country during the war, but they returned home to a country with segregation. Segregation that had separate drinking fountains, restrooms, facilities and a ban of African Americans in the baseball league. They had a separate major league for African Americans, it was seen as a crime to integrate. Branch Rickey the executive manager of the dodgers plays a wise old man who is determined to change the face of baseball, he wants to break the color barrier. He recruits Jackie knowing that they will face hostility, as both they endure relentless racist hatred. Robinson and his family endure death threats and discrimination on and off the field, as he struggles against his will to fight abuse without reacting he finds the real contribution that he is making for the major baseball league. He …show more content…
One of the scenes that made me sympathize was when the cardinals manager is shouting racist, ignorant comments at Jackie while he is batting, encouraging the audience to be hateful. His teammate can no longer sit on the sideline and watch him be attacked, he gets up and defends Robinson by threatening the manager to shut up or get beaten. When his teammate decides to defend him it leads the way for the others to give him a chance and treat him with respect. This scene gave me a glimpse of what people of color had to endure during the late 1940’s, segregation was dangerous because it had the ability to endanger a person’s safety in their own