"When you touched Jackie, you touched all of us," Graham said about Reese.
The final lecturer, Barry Zamoff, received a chorus of laughter and cheers as he began to speak because of his nearly identical appearance and voice to that of his twin brother, professor Richard Zamoff, who teaches a class on Jackie Robinson and had many students in attendance.
Barry Zamoff told a story about meeting Robinson while playing on a Brooklyn little league team. He said the Dodgers were essential to the civil rights movement.
"The Dodgers were the first refutation of stereotypes in baseball and beyond and it all started with Jackie Robinson," Barry Zamoff said. "There are a zillion topics where studying Robinson's story gives insight into breaking stereotypes-gays in the military, women as partners in law firms, etc."
Richard Zamoff, who teaches a course entitled "Jackie Robinson: Race, Sports, and the American Dream" said, "Jackie Robinson's story is the biggest omission in American history. Historians classify him as the second most important black man in the history of America, after Martin Luther King, and yet many people only know him as a baseball player."
Freshman Teresa Chung said, "I have to admit I didn't realize how big a role Jackie Robinson played. (The lectures) made me realize that sports figures can change history too."
The Jackie Robinson Society has already begun planning the celebration of the 60th anniversary of Robinson's groundbreaking entry in major league baseball in April.
The final lecturer, Barry Zamoff, received a chorus of laughter and cheers as he began to speak because of his nearly identical appearance and voice to that of his twin brother, professor Richard Zamoff, who teaches a class on Jackie Robinson and had many students in attendance.
Barry Zamoff told a story about meeting Robinson while playing on a Brooklyn little league team. He said the Dodgers were essential to the civil rights movement.
"The Dodgers were the first refutation of stereotypes in baseball and beyond and it all started with Jackie Robinson," Barry Zamoff said. "There are a zillion topics where studying Robinson's story gives insight into breaking stereotypes-gays in the military, women as partners in law firms, etc."
Richard Zamoff, who teaches a course entitled "Jackie Robinson: Race, Sports, and the American Dream" said, "Jackie Robinson's story is the biggest omission in American history. Historians classify him as the second most important black man in the history of America, after Martin Luther King, and yet many people only know him as a baseball player."
Freshman Teresa Chung said, "I have to admit I didn't realize how big a role Jackie Robinson played. (The lectures) made me realize that sports figures can change history too."
The Jackie Robinson Society has already begun planning the celebration of the 60th anniversary of Robinson's groundbreaking entry in major league baseball in April.
