Tomorrow, Barack Obama will become the 44th President of the United States of America. As a longtime Obama supporter, I am so proud at the work that he has done and excited to see what work he will do in the future. Our country has made a very wise choice in electing Barack, and I think we will be reaping the benefits very soon.
Today is also Martin Luther King Day. Taking the time to honor this great civil rights leader is important for many reasons, but the main one is to reflect how much our nation has changed over the years. MLK worked for equality between whites and blacks in this country, and it is fairly safe to say that without Martin Luther King, there would be no President Barack Obama.
But my question is, would there be a Martin Luther King if there had been no Jackie Robinson? What Robinson did in 1947 by suiting up for the Brooklyn Dodgers and breaking baseball’s color barrier changed the course of history in more ways than one. He not only altered the way people saw our National Pastime, but he forced white people all over the country to see a smart, courageous and extremely talented black man excel in a sport that few people though would ever be de-segregated. Before the March on Selma or the bus boycott in Birmingham, Jackie was winning NL Rookie of the Year and playing in the World Series. Before the sit-ins and King’s letter from jail, Jackie was winning MVP awards and stealing home. MLK did a heck of a lot to improve the rights of blacks, but I ‘m not sure his impact made a bigger dent than Robinson’s did. Both men were extraordinary- just as Obama is- and the USA is a better place for being the home to all three of them. And I’m not saying that King doesn’t deserve his own holiday. But I think it’s time that our country remembers the man who changed not only the sporting world, but the entire world.
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