'I would have got killed here': Baseball legend Reggie Jackson on racism he faced in Alabama
Major League Baseball legend and National Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson candidly recalled the racism he faced while playing in Alabama, saying, "I wouldn't wish it on anyone."
Major League Baseball legend and National Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson candidly recalled the racism he faced while playing in Alabama, saying, "I wouldn't wish it on anyone."
The 78-year-old was among several Black baseball stars at Rickwood Field in Birmingham on Thursday for a Negro League tribute game between the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals.
Returning to the field was "not easy," Jackson said, as he reflected on being called racial slurs and denied entry in restaurants and hotels due to the color of his skin.
"I would never want to do it again. I walked into restaurants and they would point at me and say that n----- can’t eat here," he explained during a Fox Sports pregame show.
Negro League legends prior to the 2024 Rickwood game between the San Francisco Giants and the St. Louis Cardinals on June 20 in Birmingham, Ala.Daniel Shirey / MLB Photos via Getty Images"We went to (Kansas City A's owner) Charlie Finley’s country club for a welcome home dinner and they pointed me out with the N-word, 'He can’t come in here.' Finley marched the whole team out. Finally, they let me in there. He said, 'We’re going to go to the diner and eat hamburgers. We’ll go where we’re wanted,'" Jackson said.
Rating: 5