The Desegregation of Baseball

The Desegregation of Baseball

The Desegregation of baseball in America was a slow process. Near the end of the 1800's, African American ballplayers were accepted in the Major Leagues, but as their success grew, they were quickly banned from the league. For the fifty-year period that there were no blacks in the Major Leagues, the Negro Leagues were where black ballplayers competed. The Negro Leagues grew and many stars emerged from the leagues that now have a legendary status. When Jackie Robinson joined the Major Leagues in 1954, baseball was once again desegregated (Sailer). The complete integration of the league was not as rapid as many would have expected. Economic reasons seemed to be the main reason why African Americans were brought back into the Major Leagues but there were other factors that contributed.

John W. Fowler was the first black professional baseball player. He was born a free man in 1854. Fowler played for a team in New Castle Pennsylvania. He was the first of more than thirty black players in the white leagues before 1900. He was recognized by the white media as one of the best second basemen of his day, but he never got the chance to play in the Major Leagues. The first black major league player was named Moses Fleetwood Walker. Walker was in Ohio in 1857. He played two years of baseball for Oberlin College, and two years playing with Michigan at Ann Arbor. In 1983, he joined the Toledo club of the North Western league. Toledo entered the American Association a year later and Walker become the first black Major Leaguer. Walker was actually well received in most of his games. He was even applauded in some places. However, in two southern cities, Richmond and Louisville he was harasse...

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... For example, the 1954 Brown verses the Board of Education was not greatly enforced until the Nixon Administration began strictly enforcing it fifteen years later (Rust).

Just as most sports before World War II, baseball was racially segregated. Some African Americans participated in dominantly white leagues but for the most part baseball remained segregated especially between 1900 and 1947. The desegregation of baseball was very important to American culture. The Major Leagues was desegregated before America's public education system. The success of players in the Negro Leagues and the circumstances of World War II helped lead the way towards the signing of Jackie Robinson. However, economic opportunities were the core reasons for Robinson's signing. The desegregation of American baseball was slow, but it still preceded the Civil Rights revolution.