Can someone refresh my memory? Was Hank Aaron the target of racists when he broke Babe Ruth’s all time home run record?
Yes, he had death threats leading up to the record...I saw an interview with him back in the 90s, he was scared silly after he hit 715 beacuse as he rounded second and the Atlanta fan raced onto the field...he wasn’t sure if the fan was friend or foe...
Haters? Who are these “haters”? Is it the soft prejudice that is the driving force of “low expectations”? Is it the implied belief in inferiority that is behind “Affirmative Action”?
The old-fashioned belief that one can, by sheer strength of will, overcome what some may see as “limitations”, and expand far beyond “expectations”, is an ingrained article of faith with those of us who believe in the innate dignity of every human being, and the transcendence that shows through commitment to faith in that which cannot be seen, or to the inner voice that speaks to the individual alone.
yeah, it was pretty ugly. Just a decade earlier, it wasn’t too pretty for Maris when he was chasing Ruth’s 60 (though Mantle would have been acceptable to most). Throw in a black guy and things got even worse for Hammerin’ Hank. But to pretend it would be a problem now is just ludicrous. Hell, people don’t even acknowledge Bonds “passing” Aaron, because Aaron’s record has people’s respect. That alone should be proof enough this theory is crap. Yeah - people really hated Henderson when he beat out Cobb. Hell, people hated Cobb for being racist pr!ck. THis writer needs someone to explain baseball history to him.