I Never Had It Made

In opening Chapter 11, “Campaigning for Nixon,” Robinson begins by writing “I do not consider my decision to back Richard Nixon over John F. Kennedy for the presidency in 1960 one of my finer ones. It was a sincere one, however, at the time” (135). This brief chapter covers Robinson’s involvement in the 1960 Presidential Election, explaining not only his unusual choice to back the republican candidate, Vice President Richard Nixon, but also his reasons for not supporting the democratic candidate, Senator John F. Kennedy. While describing Nixon as “the consummate political animal” (136), Robinson points out that, as vice president, Nixon had said things concerning racial prejudice that won him over. Kennedy, on the other hand, had refused to look Robinson in the eye when the two met, and Robinson also alleges that Kennedy attempted to buy his support. Robinson points to two incidents resulting in his knowing that his support for Nixon was a mistake: The first was that Nixon backtracked on the notion that he would appoint a black man to his cabinet, and the second was Nixon’s inaction and lack of concern over the jailing of Martin Luther King Jr. following a minor traffic infraction in Georgia.

In another very brief chapter, Robinson strays from his business life and political activism to return to the discussion of baseball and his induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. Writing that he had “steeled [himself] for rejection” (141) because the Hall of Fame ballots are cast by the Baseball Writers Association of America, with whom he had always been controversial, Robinson goes on to explain the importance of the honor and to admit that it was indeed important to him to be voted in. Dick Young, the sportswriter who had frequently clashed with Robinson throughout his later career, and who had once warned him that awards might not come his way because of his outspokenness, even wrote a column supporting his induction. As it turned out, Robinson received more than enough of the 75 percent of votes required and was inducted a few months later.

Closing out the chapter, Robinson discusses another honor he received in 1962, a testimonial dinner and a Hall of Fame award from Dr. Martin Luther King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Concerning his work for the SCLC, Robinson declared: “I believed so fervently in Dr. Martin Luther King and his courageous aides that nothing I could do for them was too good” (144). 

Returning to social and political activism in Chapter 13, “Conflict at the Apollo,” Robinson relays the story concerning the controversy that arose over Frank Schiffman, owner of the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem, in 1962. Schiffman, a white Jewish man, leased one of his other Harlem properties to a restaurateur that would be in direct competition with an established black restaurateur. As Robinson describes it, the squabble was over the fact that both restaurants were steak houses, and the new owner’s prices were extremely low, threatening to harm the established restaurateur’s business. As a result, black nationalists organized picket lines in front of the Apollo and, according to Robinson, “resorted to blatant appeals to anti-Semitism” (146). Schiffman reached out to various religious and civic leaders, but none came to his defense. Robinson, on the other hand, did come to his defense in his weekly syndicated newspaper column.

Robinson declared “I have resented bigotry in any form, and I couldn’t understand when no one came to Schiffman’s aid,” and asked the question “how could we stand against anti-black prejudice if we were willing to practice or condone a similar intolerance” (147). The black nationalists became enraged and in turn began picketing a nearby Chock full o’ Nuts store as well. While several civic leaders eventually sided with Robinson and Schiffman and gave prepared statements backing them, more militant blacks in the community were dug in on their protest. This controversy led to a radio debate between Robinson and Lewis Micheaux, owner of the National Memorial African Book Store, in which the two men came to see eye-to-eye on the matter of anti-Semitism, and the protests stopped

Robinson uses Chapter 14, “Crises at Home,” to strictly discuss his family life. The chapter opens with Robinson exploring the schooling choices he and his wife made for each of the children and eventually focuses specifically on Jackie Jr., the oldest and the one who faced the most challenges in school and in growing up. Robinson explores his relationship with his son with brutal honesty. He acknowledges that, although mutual love existed, the same sort of rapport he shared with Sharon and David was not present with his oldest son. Jackie Jr. ran away from home in his teens, but he returned and volunteered for the Army in 1964. Jackie’s service in the military resulted in a stint in Vietnam, where he was wounded in combat. This portion of the chapter allows Robinson to openly discuss the antiwar movement within the black community. Although Robinson acknowledges that he was a supporter of the war and that both he and Jackie Jr. were bothered by antiwar protests, he also fully recognizes the stance taken by people such as Martin Luther King Jr. Robinson argues that many black soldiers must have come to question, as Jackie Jr. did, “the contradiction of having fought for freedom for people on foreign soil only to come home to be denied equal rights” (156-157).

While pointing out that he and Rachel have never had a major conflict, Robinson does discuss one specific problem that could have threatened their marriage: Rachel’s professional career. Not wanting “to go through her life being known only as Mrs. Jackie Robinson” (159), Rachel earned a master’s degree in psychiatric nursing from New York University while the kids were still young. Robinson admits that he began to show annoyance and resentment when she began working every day, but he also admits honestly that he knows he was wrong because “she was entitled to aspire to her own personal goals” (159). After beginning her career at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University, Rachel became an assistant professor in the School of Nursing at Yale University.  

Robinson’s deepest foray into national politics came through his association with, and belief in, Nelson Rockefeller, the four-term governor of New York, 1964 presidential candidate, and future Vice President of the United States. Referring to his charisma and personal charm, Robinson argues that “it is almost impossible not to like the man” (162). However, more than a simple fondness for him, Robinson truly respected Rockefeller because of his deep commitment to racial equality. Rockefeller had not only defended protesting youths during their Civil Rights Movement sit-ins in the Deep South, but he had also been very philanthropic toward civil rights causes such as Dr. Martin Luther King’s SCLC. When Rockefeller entered the 1964 presidential contest for the nomination of the Republican Party, he asked Robinson to become one of six deputy national directors of his campaign. Robinson accepted this position with the Rockefeller campaign and resigned from his position with Chock full o’ Nuts.

Despite coming to regret his support for Nixon in 1960 and confessing in 1964 that he was “not as sold on the Republican Party as he was on the governor” (168), Robinson strongly campaigned for Rockefeller across the country and served as a special delegate to the Republican National Convention. Ultra-conservative Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona ended up winning the nomination, and Robinson called his experience at the convention “one of the most unforgettable and frightening experiences of [his] life” (169) because of the hatred that he witnessed directed toward the liberal Rockefeller. In response to Goldwater’s convention victory, Robinson remarked “a new breed of Republicans had taken over the GOP. As I watched this steamroller operation in San Francisco, I had a better understanding of how it must have felt to be a Jew in Hitler’s Germany” (169). Despite many of the anti-Goldwater republicans who had previously spoken out against him flip-flopping and were now supporting him for the presidency, Robinson refused to do so and supported democrat Lyndon B. Johnson in the Presidential Election.