Senate Resolution No. 799
BY: Senator BAILEY
RECOGNIZING April 15, 2025, as Jackie Robinson Day
in the State of New York
WHEREAS, On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson stepped onto the field
with the Brooklyn Dodgers as the first African American to play Major
League Baseball in the modern era, breaking the league's color barrier
and altering the sport's history; and
WHEREAS, It is with noble admiration and pride that this Legislative
Body pays just recognition to an athlete whose bravery, skill and quiet
dignity brought extraordinary humanity to both the game of baseball and
the Nation, contributing to the integration of the sport; and
WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud to recognize April
15, 2025, as Jackie Robinson Day, celebrating the baseball icon's
legacy; and
WHEREAS, Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, in
Cairo, Georgia, and raised in Pasadena, California, by a single mother
of five; and
WHEREAS, Robinson attended the University of California Los Angeles,
where he became the university's first four-sport letter winner,
excelling in football, basketball, track and field, and baseball; and
WHEREAS, During World War II, Jackie Robinson enlisted in the United
States Army, where he rose to the rank of Second Lieutenant and was
honorably discharged after two years; and
WHEREAS, In 1945, Jackie Robinson began playing in the Negro
National League as a shortstop for the Kansas City Monarchs; later that
year, he was invited to become the first African American to play with
the Brooklyn Dodgers' farm team, the Montreal Royals; and
WHEREAS, In 1947, at the age of 28, Jackie Robinson joined the
Dodgers and was named Rookie of the Year that season; and
WHEREAS, In 1949, Jackie Robinson was named the National League's
Most Valuable Player, and in 1955, he helped the Dodgers beat the New
York Yankees to win their first World Series Championship; and
WHEREAS, At the end of Jackie Robinson's nine years as a Dodger, his
record included a .311 batting average, 137 home runs, 734 runs batted
in, and 197 stolen bases; and
WHEREAS, Jackie Robinson retired from baseball in 1957 and was
inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, in
1962, a fitting finale to an illustrious career that triumphed over
adversity and paved the way for future generations of Black baseball
players; and
WHEREAS, Jackie Robinson's post-baseball contributions included
serving as the first Black analyst for MLB telecasts; serving as vice
president for personnel at Chock Full o'Nuts; co-founding the Freedom
National Bank of Harlem, a Black-owned and -operated commercial bank;
and founding the Jackie Robinson Construction Company, which sought to
build housing for low-income people; and
WHEREAS, On June 4, 1972, the Dodgers retired Jackie Robinson's No.
42 in an on-field ceremony at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles; in 1997,
all of Major League Baseball saluted him on the 50th Anniversary of his
breaking the color barrier by universally retiring his number from the
game; and
WHEREAS, In 2007, Cincinnati Reds star Ken Griffey Jr. requested
special permission to wear No. 42 on Jackie Robinson Day, and beginning
in 2009, No. 42 has been worn by every player and coach across the
league on April 15; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative body to commend
individuals of historical significance who have contributed to the
richness and ethnic diversity of New York State and our nation; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
recognize April 15, 2025, as Jackie Robinson Day in the State of New
York.
