Today is Jackie Robinson Day. Like so many events right now that are usually celebrated in person, we will need to go online to collectively observe the date when Jack Roosevelt Robinson broke into the major leagues in 1947.
Like Jackie in Game 1 of the 1955 World Series, lots of you are safe at home, preventing the spread of the Coronavirus. And if you are an "essential worker," thank you for your service. You don't need to wear a hospital gown or a uniform (or 42 on your jersey) to be a hero.
Major League Baseball has announced a full day of programming on a variety of platforms, including Ken Burns’ “Jackie Robinson,” "Letters To Jackie"—a documentary that focuses on Robinson’s role in the American civil rights movement—and footage from the 1955 World Series.
MLB is also streaming Jackie Robinson Day games from 1997, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2017 and 2019. Take your pick or watch all six! (What you do while you are WFH is between you and your supervisor and not for me to judge.) Individual ball clubs are hosting their own events and the Jackie Robinson Foundation has more media and other activities on its website.
I note (and you knew this was coming) that none of the announcements make any mention of the long-delayed Jackie Robinson Museum. Yeah, I am aware that every museum in New York City is currently closed but the anniversary would have been a fine opportunity to make some statement. Instead, 3.5 months into the year, all we have been told is that the museum is—
Comparative Footnote:
The Daytona Tortugas, who play at Jackie Robinson Ballpark, used today's anniversary to announce plans to renovate Kelly Field, where the Dodgers moved their 1946 spring training camp after Sanford, Florida residents threatened unrest if Robinson trained at Sanford Municipal Athletic Field.
The Tortugas didn't announce that the work was complete or, given the Coronavirus pandemic, even that the team was ready to break ground. They did, however, announce their hopes of providing the field to the community sometime next year.
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