#OTD in 1974, Hank Aaron (who died in January 2021) hit his 715th home run, breaking Babe Ruth’s legendary record before a crowd of 53,775 people, the largest in the history of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. This achievement was bittersweet; at each step of his historic rise, he faced systemic and extreme racism that included hate mail and death threats. He described the effects of this vitriol on his family and his heart:
“It really made me see for the first time a clear picture of what this country is about. My kids had to live like they were in prison because of kidnap threats, and I had to live like a pig in a slaughter camp. I had to duck. I had to go out the back door of the ball parks. I had to have a police escort with me all the time. I was getting threatening letters every single day. All of these things have put a bad taste in my mouth, and it won’t go away. They carved a piece of my heart away.” NYT interview.
Aaron saved many of those letters and even the death threats.
“To remind myself that we are not that far removed from when I was chasing the record. If you think that, you are fooling yourself. A lot of things have happened in this country, but we have so far to go. There’s not a whole lot that has changed.” USA Today interview.
Such hatred didn’t stop him. Instead, Aaron seized the opportunity for greatness and advancement on the field and beyond (from here): :
“In playing ball, and in life, a person occasionally gets the opportunity to do something great. When that time comes, only two things matter: being prepared to seize the moment and having the courage to take your best swing.” - Hank Aaron
President Carter welcomes Hank Aaron to the White House, 8/15/1978, Carter Library, NARA IDs 180805 and180806.
“A breaker of records and racial barriers, his remarkable legacy will continue to inspire countless athletes and admirers for generations to come.” –President Carter
President George W. Bush Presents Presidential Medal of Freedom to Hank Aaron, 7/9/2002, George W. Bush Library, NARA ID 6734115.
