Jackie Robinson Presentation Wraps Up Black History Month at Library District

The Smithtown Special Library District concluded Black History Month with “Emerging from Segregation: Jackie Robinson’s Legacy,” a presentation by Steve Klipstein, English and Holocaust Studies professor at Suffolk County Community College.

Fans of Robinson filled the old meeting room in the Smithtown branch of the library district and discussed the athlete’s cultural importance as well as his importance to the sport, his best moments on the field and more.

Klipstein said he was excited that the people in attendance were just as excited about the discussion as he was, and said he has a personal connection to his discussions of Robinson.

“It’s personal for me – he was one of my childhood heroes,” he said. “My parents were very involved in various political things when they were younger, one of them was the fight for racial equality. Right where I was living was this man who was basically this symbol of so much that happened that it became very important to me as I grew up.”

While many people in attendance offered their opinions of Robinson and spoke about his legacy, no one was more vocal than Steve’s son, Jacob. Only 11-years-old, Jacob is already an expert on all things related to Robinson.

Klipstein said Jacob needed no push to learn about Robinson and studied the athlete’s legacy and cultural significance on his own.   

“You mention something to Jacob and a minute later he’s on the computer looking it up,” he said. “I have a lot of interests and obviously we’re very close so my interests become his interests. He’s incredibly interested in history and he’s incredibly interested in baseball.”

Jacob said he was attracted to how Robinson inspired others.

“I think he’s like just a good inspiration for all people, he kicked off a big step in civil rights movement,” he said. “Back then you see a man playing major league baseball but at the same time you would have never said a black man would be president and now you see that happening too, so many things can happen that probably you’ll never expect.”