The Courage to Stand Up For What's Right
April 15, 2004 |
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Transcript
It takes courage to maintain integrity and stand up for what’s right. One example is Jackie Robinson, who in the late 1940’s was the first black baseball player to break into the majors with the Brooklyn Dodgers. But a key part of this courageous story was the brave stance of short stop Pee Wee Reece. A petition was circulated around the locker room that already had some of the team’s signatures. It simply said "No black player should be allowed to play on the Dodgers." When it reached Reece in the locker room he grabbed it, tore it up and left it scattered on the floor. Pee Wee Reece was also the first player to walk across the field and shake a black man's hand. At a ball game in Cincinnati the Dodgers were welcomed by a jeering crowd that was cursing at Robinson, who was standing on first base. Reece in, his own low key way, calmly walked over, put his arm around Robinson’s shoulder and stared down the offensive crowd. Reece’s courage quieted the people and restored enough civility so that the game could be played. Pee Wee Reece had the courage to stand up for what was right, identify with someone who was wronged, and not worry about what people thought. Now, personally I’ve got plenty of room for improvement in this area. But it also takes courage for teens today to stand up for what’s right. But we parents need to put our arms around them and talk to them about the courageous decisions they’re going to need to make, both before and after they leave our homes. |
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