Who knew The George Washington University was one of Jackie Robinson’s greatest fans?
The university not only hosts an annual Jackie Robinson Community Recognition award ceremony, as was the case Thursday, but also has an on-campus Jackie Robinson Society, has been teaching a class on Robinson for 12 years and a toy company just decided to team up with their Jackie Robinson Project.
Some of the 500 students who have taken the course on Robinson filled the audience to watch as awards were given to ESPN’s Michael Wilbon, WJLA-TV’s Maureen Bunyan and civil rights activist Franklin Kameny for reflecting the attitudes of the legendary sports hero.
And they couldn’t have picked a better day. Thursday marked both the 62nd anniversary of Robinson’s integration of Major League Baseball and the day President Abraham Lincoln signed the Compensated Emancipation Act.
