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Books > Sport & Leisure > Sports & outdoor recreation > Ball games > American football
THE FORGOTTEN FIRST chronicles the lives of four incredible men,
the racism they experienced as Black players entering a segregated
sport, the burden of expectation they carried, and their many
achievements, which would go on to affect football for generations
to come. More than a year before Jackie Robinson broke the color
barrier in Major League Baseball, there was another seismic moment
in pro sports history. On March 21,1946, former UCLA star running
back Kenny Washington-a teammate of Robinson's in college-signed a
contract with the Los Angeles Rams. This ended one of the most
shameful periods in NFL history, when African-American players were
banned from league play. Washington would not be alone in serving
as a pioneer for NFL integration. Just months after he joined the
Rams, thanks to a concerted effort by influential Los Angeles
political and civic leaders, the team signed Woody Strode, who
played with both Washington and Robinson at UCLA in one of the most
celebrated backfields in college sports history. And that same
year, a little-known coach named Paul Brown of the fledgling
Cleveland Browns signed running back Marion Motley and defensive
lineman Bill Willis, thereby integrating a startup league that
would eventually merge with the NFL. THE FORGOTTEN FIRST tells the
story of one of the most significant cultural shifts in pro
football history, as four men opened the door to opportunity and
changed the sport forever.
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