Jackie Robinson Was Hero of Fight Against Both Racism and Anti-Semitism
Harlem moviegoers at the opening of “42” will see the story of Jackie Robinson’s legendary courage, class and talent in the face of immense pressure and racial hatred as he broke down baseball’s color barrier.
Less well known is Robinson’s role in a controversy that erupted just a few blocks away, at Harlem’s most famous theater, and underscored his commitment to fighting all bigotry, including prejudice emanating from his own community.
It was 1962, a decade-and-a-half after Robinson first took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers and just a few years after he retired. Day after day, an angry crowd marched outside Harlem’s legendary Apollo Theater protesting against its Jewish owner, Frank Schiffman, and his plan to open a low-cost restaurant with prices that potentially would threaten the business of a more expensive black-owned eatery.
The demonstrators carried anti-Semitic posters and hurled racial epithets, reportedly denouncing Schiffman as a Shylock who wanted to extract a pound of flesh from the black community.
Schiffman turned to several black leaders for help, but despite the increasingly hostile acts of anti-Semitism that were taking place, they all remained silent – except for Robinson.
Read more: http://forward.com/articles/174609/jackie-robinson-was-hero-of-fight-against-both-rac/#ixzz2QE8H80y6
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I'm not a sports fan, but he's someone I've always admired. The truly principled among us are the real heroes, not the arrogant self-promoters. They appeal to our better nature. 
