We Celebrate Jackie Robinson--a Civil Rights Pioneer, a Bruin & a Republican

On April 15, more than taxes are due. We celebrate something far more significant--the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in professional baseball. In fact, he didn't just break Baseball's barrier; he broke it for all professional sports. He even ushered in the civil rights movement. His Dodger teammate,, Ralph Branca said it well, "You have to give him credit. He really did break the color barrier. He made it easier for Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks and everybody else who followed. (USA Today, April 13, 2007)

What touched me most about recent coverage was a pen pal relationship with the black legend Jackie Robinson and 14-year-old white Jewish boy from Sheboygan, Wisconsin. He was a pen pal with a legend. The correspondence with Robinson opened up a whole new world to this young man. Today he talks about his 18 personalized letters and a dozen signed pictures. He doesn't want anyone to forget this man who helped changed the country.

Now a salesman, Ron Rabinovitz relives the great memories of his relationship with Robinson. Jackie would write once every six weeks during the season. There were congratulatory telegrams for his bar mitzvah and high school graduation, and visits when the Dodgers were in town.

Interestingly, though Ron's family were Democrats, Ron remembered that Jackie was a strong Republican. Disappointed by the Southern Democrats' stand against civil rights, he wrote to Ron, "We have a real fight on civil rights ahead of us, and it appears we still have some forces to lick. I am still very disappointed in the Democrats and hope we can get some kind of a stand." After complaining about the Kennedy and Johnson, he wrote, "Democrats talk for effect, but when important issues come up they can't do a thing. I expect to go all out for the Republicans. I would prefer the kind of leadership that at least is honest and expresses its own viewpoint. It may not be the way I believe, but it is at least their opinion and I trust a man who at least stands by his own beliefs. I can't say much for the Democrats who promised so much but produced nothing."

How would he talk now about the entitlement traps the Democrats have created for black America that just hold so many back. I believe this strong "can do" American would still be critical of many Democrats and current black leaders.

When Jackie died on October 24, 1972, Ron wrote his widow, Rachel: "Through the years I learned from Jackie the true meaning of being a man. I learned never to back down on a cause you truly believe in no matter what the odds against you might be. These are important things for a boy to know while growing up, and I will cherish these memories and recall the beauty of a friendship between a man and a boy."

To this day, when Ron talks to young people about Jackie, he shares the doctrine that had guided Jackie's life, that he wrote in 1957: "I learned a long time ago that a person must be true to himself to succeed. He must be willing to stand by his principles even at the possible loss of prestige. He must first learn to live with himself before he can hope to live with others. Always, Jackie."

Now that is a mentor worth learning from and a legend worth honoring. It helps that he was a UCLA Bruin.and a Republican...not that I'm biased or anything!