The beginning of the 2007 MLB season marked the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s first season in the majors. As we all know, Robinson was the first black athlete to play in the majors, and he played for the Brooklyn Dodgers. During that difficult season, on May 14, 1947, one of the greatest moments in sports history took place. The Brooklyn Dodgers rolled into Cincinnati for a two-game series against against the Reds at Crosley Field. During the second game of the series (a day game following a night game), white racists in the stands yelled nasty racial insults at Robinson, who stood at first base. When the insults grew louder, Pee Wee Reese, the Dodgers’ team captain and shortstop--and a white southerner himself--did something that sent a message to those hecklers and to his teammates as well.

You can get the full story on page 237 of the 2008 edition of The World Almanac for Kids, on sale June 26. Pre-order your copy now...and in the meantime, get a few more takes on the story at the links below.

“Standing Beside Jackie Robinson, Reese Helped Change Baseball,” New York Times, March 31, 1997
Pee Wee Reese Obituary, The Sporting News, August 23, 1999, via findarticles.com