Journal #7

Rosie Buckley

The Number 42

         There are many scenes in this movie that show racial discrimination against African Americans, with specific examples occurring during sports. There is one scene that really caught my attention because of how differently African Americans were treated.  In this part of the movie Jackie Robinson got brought up to play in the majors for the Brooklyn Dodgers. The Dodgers were playing the Philadelphia Phillies and the manager of the Phillies, Ben Chapman, kept saying cold, rude, and horrifying racial verbal slurs while Jackie Robinson was up to bat. Jackie Robinson was a courageous person that didn’t succumb and fight back to the effects of those words.  The bullying was continuous and it finally got to Jackie. Instead of taking his anger out to this man, Jackie took a bat went into the hallway near the locker room and let out his anger by smashing his bat against the wall to let out the hurt, anger, and rage.  After he came back he was up to bat and one of his teammates went up to Ben Chapman and set him straight and after that Chapman didn’t scream out at him. While Robinson was up to bat he got a hit and from there he basically stole his way to home base showing everybody that he is a true baseball player.  To recognize Jackie Robinson every year in April, every team in Major League Baseball (MLB) wears the number 42 as a reminder of all of his remarkable and historic achievements. The number 42 is the only number retired and no one currently playing in the MLB wears the number 42. Jackie Robinson is known as a hero that changed the game of baseball from his very first step onto the field.

                 http://www.thrillermag.com/articles/a-critique-on-42-the-jackie-robinson-biopic/