5 Comments

• #1 by Michael L. Slavin on September 6th, 2010

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  There are, of course, many books on the civil rights movement. This one, however, has its own focus. Segregation/integration of baseballs southern and border state minor leagues. The chapters are organized by year. Beginning in 1951 up thru the mid-sixties. Some well known leagues and others almost forgotten such as The South Atlantic, Cotton States,West Texas-New Mexico,Southwest International, Sooner State,Coastal Plain,Texas,Florida State,Carolina,Florida International,Texas,Southern Association,Evangeline, are discussed. As would be expected most of the racial problems came from the deep south. The author recounts how segregationists tried various legal maneuvers to ban integrated sports contests.The book describes the conditions that the trailblazing players endured such as difficulty finding lodging, obtaining meal service, traveling, as well as regularly enduring racial taunts and threats. Segregated seating at the ball parks caused many black fans to boycott games. Teams and leagues folded. Due to a number of factors not the least of which was the advent of television. The combination of tv, wider availability of home airconditioning and the black fan boycott all contributed to a major fall off in game attendance. This is an interesting, worthwhile book which covers an important part of baseball history.
  Rating: 4 / 5

• #2 by Anonymous on September 6th, 2010

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  The author has done an excellent job documenting the experiences of Hank Aaron, Billy Williams, Felipe Alou and others who broke minor league baseball color lines down south in the years after Jackie Robinson opened up the major leagues. His book includes poignant and compelling interviews with these and other ballplayers who relate their painful experiences of enduring Jim Crow racial restrictions while playing baseball. The author also places their achievements within the historical context of the times, the 1950s and 1960s. These players were truly civil rights pioneers, helping to integrate a closed society. This is a must read!
  Rating: 5 / 5

• #3 by Anonymous on September 6th, 2010

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  A compelling and very well-written account of Jim Crow and minor league baseball in the American South. The book is a fascinating cultural and historical study. The author clearly devoted a great deal of time in researching this book. His presentation of the oral histories is fantastic.
  Rating: 5 / 5

• #4 by Anonymous on September 7th, 2010

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  This is a wonderful book, recounting a largely unknown story of American and baseball history – how the southern minors’ integration was part of the larger civil rights movement. 20th century baseball integration began but did not end with Jackie Robinson and Larry Doby. Unitl now, no one had taken their legacy to the next step. Bruce Adelson now has in a powerful account of what it was like being on the front lines of baseball and civil rights in the Dixie of the 1950s and early 1960s.
  Rating: 5 / 5

• #5 by Anonymous on September 7th, 2010

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  The author does a great job of capturing both sides of the integration battlefields (ballparks) of the South. He effectively uses narratives of former players, both the famous (Felipe Alou, Billy Williams, etc.)and the not so famous (Joe Durham, Percy Miller Jr., etc.) to detail exactly what those pioneers had to endure. Those narratives are interwoven with clippings from various newspapers of the day to tie the intergration of minor league baseball in the South with the overall racial climate of those cities. This book, I believe, would prove to be an interesting and informative read, even for those who are not baseball fans. Adelson obviously did a lot of research and successfully shows how baseball “broke down the walls” for total integration in the South. Spend the money and the time on this book – it’s worth it!
  Rating: 5 / 5