Today in Labor History July 6, 1944: Four years before breaking the color barrier in Major League Baseball, Jackie Robinson refused to move to the back of a military bus, leading to a court-martial. He was acquitted by an all-white jury of nine officers. Fortunately, the court proceedings prevented his deployment and he finished World War II without seeing combat. The following year, Branch Rickey began to recruit him to play for the Dodgers. When he asked Robinson if he could take the racist epithets that would likely be hurled at him, he said, “Are you looking for a Negro who is afraid to fight back?” Rickey said, “No, I’m looking for one with guts enough NOT to fight back.”