Racial Integration in College Football in the 1950s

In the 1950s, America was viewed as one the strongest nations in the World. America established itself as a strong military super power and dominate country in World War II. The effects of World War II carried over in the 1950s, America saw a lot of economic growth, there was an increase in the amount of people who moved to the suburbs, and the baby boom which came about because of the millions of soldiers returning home from military services. Even though this seemed like a happy time, there was still a thick tension in America. This tension was between African-Americans and white Americans. In 1865, the thirteenth amendment was passed which abolished slavery. Even though this occurred, white people still felt that African-American were†¦show more content†¦Davis didn’t let this stop him, he got back up after every play and was determined to not let racism prevail. He was supported by the black community who filled the stands of segregated stadiums to come and see hi m play. â€Å"He led the squad [Syracuse] to its first unbeaten season, then became the varsitys top rusher as a sophomore in 1959† (Carter). During this decade, predominately white institutions started integrating their teams more, mainly in the south. The last major college in the south to integrate their football team was the University of Texas who signed walk-ons E.A Curry and Robinson Parsons in 1967. It took some time but seeing at least one black player on college team became common, however not necessarily social acceptable. Racism was an accepted ideology for many years and it wasn’t going to just be rejected overnight. Only time could rid itself of this racist ideology. Nevertheless, if black players had the talent then they had a chance of being a part of major college football program. In the book titled Race, Sports, and the American Dream, it discussed how sports helped change the place of African-American in society. â€Å"Sports was well segregated deep into the 20th century† (Smith 9). How college football looked in America in the 1950s was exactly how American society looked in the 1950s, segregated and racist. African-American athletes in college football helped fight and negate stereotypes because it showed that they are equally as goodShow MoreRelatedChanges Brewing For African American History1708 Words   |  7 Pages Changes Brewing for African Americans in 1950s Determined to write a play about African American experience in the United States for every decade during the 20th century, Wilson has written many plays representing each of these decades. Fences is one of such plays about African American in the 1950 s. It began in 1957 and ended in 1965; however, the 1950s marks the time period when the struggle against segregation and racial discrimination became strong in the mainstream of AmericanRead MoreAnalysis Of George Wilson s Fences 965 Words   |  4 PagesTaking the Collar August Wilson was an African American man, born in 1945. The playwright never saw much of his father growing up. Instead, he was raised solely by his mother in a black neighborhood in Pittsburg. This being said, racial discrimination was impossible to escape. Wilson, like most colored people at the time, faced struggles day to day. Eventually, it reached a peak in high school when he’d written an excellent paper on Napoleon, only to be accused of plagiarism because â€Å"no black manRead MoreEssay about The Battle of Ole Miss1600 Words   |  7 PagesSACRAMENTO CITY COLLEGE THE BATTLE OF OLE MISS AS IT RELATES TO THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN EXPERIENCE AND AMERICAN HISTORY A TERM PAPER SUBMITTED TO PROFESSOR K.R.V. HENINGBURG DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY BY MONA SALIMI SACRAMENTO, CA 19 APRIL 2010 James Meredith’s successful campaign to gain admission to the Univeristy of Mississippi, ‘Ole Miss’, and desegregate education in the state most resistant to integration of educational institutions, has become a crucial episode in civil rights historyRead MoreBaseball : The Rise And Ruin Of A Black Institution Essay1886 Words   |  8 PagesLeague Baseball: The Rise and Ruin of a Black Institution, historian Neil Lanctot explores the Negro baseball leagues beginning in the 1920s until their eventual collapse in the 1960s. Exceedingly well researched, Lanctot’s book probes the sport’s racial history on an almost season-by-season timeline and carefully shows what led to the league’s eventual demise. Between 1933 and about the end of the second World War, black baseball evolved from just another failing Depression-era industry to an incrediblyRead MoreFences, By August Wilson1104 Words   |  5 Pagesthe play, showing the life they lived in their black tenement in Pittsburg in the 1950s. The setting demonstrates the drama of their struggle, frustration, rebellion, and the predicaments that unfold. Slavery has been eliminated from America for some time prior to the setting of this play, but it still shadows and presses upon the African-American community in Wilson’s play. August Wilson’s play Fences, shows the racial segregation and injustice displayed in America through out much of the middle ofRead MoreRacism in College Football3444 Words   |  14 PagesIntegration in Ole Miss Football Today, African American athletes play a strong and predominant role in the football program at the university however, this was not always the case. Less than fifty years ago, the Ole Miss football program was just as segregated as it had been in its early days. As a whole, the Southeastern Conference of the NCAA was the last to instrgarate black athletes with the current white ones (Paul 297, 284). Of the ten teams in the conference at the time, the UniversityRead MoreIn the years before Jackie Robinson was a household name, America was not the same place that was1600 Words   |  7 Pagesregistering to vote as well. As you would think, opportunities of advancement in education for blacks were more limited than that of whites. However there were a few colleges that gave African Americans the opportunity of top-notch education. In 1944 the United Negro College Fund was founded to supply funds to historically black colleges. Throughout history there are many people that have been cited as a person that helped with the advancement of right for African American citizens in the United StatesRead MoreJackie Robinson : Breaking The Color Line2266 Words   |  10 Pagesknown as â€Å"America’s pastime† had over 14 million people in the U.S. alone watching the World Series in 20151. Due to the growing popularity of baseball throughout the world the players of Major League Baseball (MLB) have become more diverse. Since 1950 when baseball started to grow in popularity the attendance per game has risen over 40%2. On Friday June 19, 1846 the first officially recorded baseball game in American History was played. Six months before this event slavery was abolished on DecemberRead MoreJackie Robinson And The Civil Rights Movement1617 Words   |  7 Pagesdiscrimination and segregation in America it was very difficult for black people to exercise their rights during this time period. Throughout the 1940’s and 1950’s Jackie Robinson’s baseball career dramatically changed as he was the first African American Major League Baseball player. However after signing to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers integration started to become a reality in some societies today. The efforts of Jackie Robinson enabled the Civil Rights Movement to gain the national attention in orderRead MoreThe African American Struggle During The United States Essay2085 Words   |  9 PagesThe African American Struggle in the United States Before the civil rights movement in America, many writers that grew up during times of oppression and racial discrimination began to speak out about the problems African Americans faced. Wilson, Hughes, and Hansberry explore the themes of racism and the American dream in their works to reveal the situation for black Americans in the United States during the time period after World War II. The American dream is the idea that every person should