Who Am I?

By GREGORY LING

Photo: BOB SANDBERG
Photo: BOB SANDBERG

1. I was born in Cairo, Georgia, on January 31, 1919, into a family of sharecroppers (small farmers who give a share of crops to the landowner as rent).

2. In 1947 I became the first African American to play Major League Baseball since 1889 when baseball became segregated. I played for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

3. In my first season with the Dodgers, I was named National League Rookie of the Year and led the league in stolen bases. I led the Dodgers to six World Series and one World Series Championship.

4. I was a spokesperson and a director of the NAACP (The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) from 1957 to 1967.

5. I was inducted to baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1962.

Answer: Jackie Robinson

Gregory Ling, 13, is from West Windsor, NJ

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