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Celebrating the 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking baseball's color barrier

Published April 7, 2022 at 9:20 AM PDT
American professional baseball player Jackie Robinson (1919 - 1972) of the Brooklyn Dodgers, dressed in a road uniform, crouches by the base and prepares to catch a ball, 1951. Throughout the course of his baseball career Robinson played several positions on the infield as well as serving as outfielder. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)
American professional baseball player Jackie Robinson (1919 - 1972) of the Brooklyn Dodgers, dressed in a road uniform, crouches by the base and prepares to catch a ball, 1951. Throughout the course of his baseball career Robinson played several positions on the infield as well as serving as outfielder. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)

Thursday is opening day for baseball. And after a labor dispute between players and owners nearly cost us the season, that feels like a small miracle.

But as teams and their fans look forward to the season, we look back to a watershed moment 75 years ago. That’s when Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier.

Host Peter O’Dowd speaks with Andrea Williams, author of “Baseball’s Leading Lady: Effa Manley and the Rise and Fall of the Negro Leagues.”

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.