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Defaced Jackie Robinson marker has new home at Negro Leagues Baseball Museum

By David Hill

Apr 15, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; The retired No. 42 of Jackie Robinson is seen at Dodger Stadium before the game between the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 15, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; The retired No. 42 of Jackie Robinson is seen at Dodger Stadium before the game between the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jackie Robinson had to endure racism throughout most of his life, and even in his professional days. The Dodgers legend is renowned for breaking the color barrier in Major League Baseball, the first black player in the majors since Fleet Walker was forced out of the game. He is easily one of the most important figures in the history of the game, someone whose contributions will not be forgotten.

Even though Robinson passed away in 1972, he is still targeted with racism. A marker honoring his birthplace had been defaced by shotgun blasts. Robinson’s marker is one of several in Georgia honoring black historical figures or landmarks that have been targeted.

Defaced Jackie Robinson marker has new home

That marker has been replaced. Major League Baseball donated $40,000 to not only replace the marker where Robinson was born, but to establish a second one in downtown Cairo to remind people that this is the town where he was born. A fund has also been established for the upkeep of both markers, making certain that his legacy will live on in Georgia.

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But the original marker has a place as well. It will have a new home at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum where it stand as a reminder that the past is not as far away as we may like to imagine. As the museum said on its Facebook page, it will “serve as a reminder that the ugliness of America’s past persists to this day.”

It is not a surprise that the marker would be targeted. Robinson’s birthplace is in a relatively remote location. A fire in 1996 destroyed the house, leaving just a chimney behind to show that a house had even been there. Racial tensions, coupled with the remoteness of the location, made that marker a target for vandalism.

It is unfortunate that this is the case. It is easy to imagine that these issues are in the past, a byproduct of a time that is far in the past. Instead, the very same issues that Robinson faced are still around to this day as he is still a target for racist attacks.

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A marker honoring Jackie Robinson’s birthplace was defaced with shotgun blasts. Its story will live on in the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

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