Like a lot of collectors, I've been fascinated with the Jackie Robinson player contracts being billed as the founding documents of the American Civil Rights Movement. After all, it's not hyperbole to make the claim. Robinson was one of the first to buck cultural norms, and his importance to the movement had been acknowledged by Civil Rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King -- saying that he was, “a pilgrim that walked in the lonesome byways toward the high road of freedom. He was a sit-inner before sit-ins, a freedom rider before freedom rides.”
So the existence of these contracts -- his 1945 Montreal and 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers documents -- have significant historical importance. That being said, I do believe it's unfortunate that they remain in private hands. They should reside in a museum somewhere -- anywhere.
Of course, I'm not advocating that they be taken from the owners without compensation. After all, these contracts, with prior claims that they originate from the Robinson family, were legally sold and transferred. At least, that's what we were told to believe.
