This thought came to me while I was visiting the Negro League Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri USA as well as reading about Indian failures in the Olympics. Righteousness is the theme and considered more important than winning (but you play hard to compete). To the start the tour, they featured a black & white film of a African-American boy singing the U.S National anthem in an old baseball uniform. After the film, I toured the exhibits featuring African-Americans (referred to as Negroes back then in America) playing baseball in Kansas City as well as other cities from late 19th to the mid 20th century. Finally, you come to a miniature baseball field with statues of past, great Negro League players from each position. The important thing you learned is what great men they were on and off the field.
 |
| John "Buck" O'Neil- Former player and Museum curator |
The museum is located on 18th and Vine Street in a inner-city, African-American neighborhood. On that site, is where the Kansas City Monarchs used to play. The team used to play in a segregated league during the 1920's till the late 1950's. During that time, Major League Baseball (formed in 1869) in America didn't not allow African-Americans to play in their leagues. This started back in 1884 when Cap Anson, an influential white refused to play against a African-American player, Moses Fleetwood, in a National Association game. From that time onward, many white leagues barred African-Americans and African descendants from other countries like Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Dominican Republic.
 |
| Rube Foster, Founder |
To counter this, independent teams formed to showcase African-American talent but folded due to lack organization and money. In 1920, Rube Foster, a former a Negro league pitcher, who owned a team called the Chicago American Giants started a a league with teams including his own Chicago team, St. Louis, Detroit, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Dayton, and Kansas City. The idea was not only to play competitive baseball but to showcase player discipline, intelligence, morality, and team fundamentals in hope for MLB inclusion as all African-American team. He helped other teams in his league who suffered financial hardships. But he kicked out many players who didn't follow his rules of righteousness. Unfortunately for Rube, he suffered mental illness from a gas leak in a hotel room in 1925 and died in a asylum in 1930.
With his death, the league suffered and league fell apart but the Kansas City Monarchs continued as an independent team owned by a white man named J.L. Wilkinson that barnstormed the Midwest and Western part of United States as well as Western Canada with a House of David Team (a Christian society team that wore their hair long and grew beards). They played local teams in those areas and introduced night baseball games before the Major Leagues did so. MLB didn't invite them despite their financial issues during the economic depression of the 1930's. Therefore in 1937, Kansas City joined the Negro American League with teams in the Midwest as well as teams in the south like Atlanta, Birmingham, and Memphis. Despite the changes and financial struggles, the Monarchs maintained the Rube Foster tradition of high moral, player conduct (they wore suits before and after games).
Likewise, drinking and carousing after games was frowned upon as well as gambling.
Finally in 1946, Major League Baseball decided to integrate black players instead of bringing a whole team like the Kansas City Monarchs. MLB teams bought players from the Monarchs but many of them failed due to the pressures of integration baseball. Only Jackie Robinson used his righteousness to win baseball games in a white league as well as overcome racial adversities brought upon media, opponents, and fans. He is considered a champion in integrating baseball. A great man. The question is: whether its important to win or be righteous? Only India knows.
