PAGE 14 PROGRAM SUCCESS – SPRING 2013
Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune and
Jackie Robinson…
A Legacy Shown Through Film
By Dominique D. Barrs
When Bethune-Cookman University buys out the entire movie
theatre, to preview a movie prior to its release date, you know that
the event is worth attending. Sure enough, at 10:00 pm as the
theatre fills, you can feel history in the making. The Athletics
Department held a special screening of the movie, “42.”
Inside the theatre were athletes and students from all walks of life.
Together, they were the integrated Baseball team that wins the
MEAC title every year, they were the Bowling teams, they were
the teams of Men and Women’s Basketball. Also in attendance
were the Coaches from each team, which cooperate with one
another to obtain their common goal, which is to inspire greatness.
Before the movie began, community leaders from Jackie
Robinson’s era elaborated on times in 1946. One speaker that stood out was a B-CU alumnus, a white male, who
reminisced on the history of the school in B-CU sports.
The movie begins. As we watched, we were reminded of the times when the level of hatred towards another individual
was based solely on their skin tone, and not their actions. We were able to witness how some cities in the West saw no
color, and how cities in the South literally spelled colored on everything. Jackie Robinson was the first baseball player
to play Major League Baseball. His path to the top was never easy, but he reached the top due to his resistance to
allowing others to hinder him from his goal.
Having been raised in Daytona Beach, it was nice seeing your town portrayed in a movie. New Yorkers are used to the
fame of having their streets as the location of movies since the start of motion picturres. However, it was a blessing to
see our city on the map being the venue to host Spring Training for a Major League Baseball team, and because of one
of its leaders, Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune.