Lee, Pee Wee

I remember reading this anecdote in James Swanson's Bloody Crimes:

On this particular Sunday morning, Lee attended St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Richmond, V.A. The church service progressed as usual until it was time for communion. When the call to communion was made, an unknown black man rose from his pew in the back of the church and made the long walk down the aisle to the front of the church where he proceeded to kneel at the communion rail.

The members of the church were shocked by this act and remained seated, unsure of what to do. Then, Robert E. Lee rose from his pew. He strode down the center aisle and knelt down next to black man, and the two received communion together. After this act, the rest of the congregation followed suit and took communion.

The best parallel being, of course, Pee Wee Reese:

A petition was drawn up by a group of mostly Southern Dodgers players that stated they would not take the field with a black man.

"I'm not signing that," Reese told the ringleaders. "No way."

Reese, the soft-spoken but respected team captain, with a Southern upbringing, perhaps surprised the petition-carriers...Robinson played, and endured vicious abuse from opposing teams, from beanballs and spikings to racial epithets and spitting. Robinson had promised Branch Rickey, the owner and general manager of the Dodgers, that for at least his first two years in the major leagues, he would hold his tongue and his fists, no matter the provocation. And one day -- it was probably in Cincinnati, Reese recalled, in 1947 or 1948 -- the attack was so nasty that Reese walked over to Robinson and put his hand on the black man's shoulder. 

Of course, both of these might be instances of "Those AMAAAAAAAZING Whites!" propaganda, but hey.

Sculptor William Behrends; Landscape architect Ken Smith, 2005
Keyspan Park, Coney Island, Brooklyn
Bronze, granite, landscaping

Inspired by the friendship of two Brooklyn Dodger baseball players who helped advance integration in the Major Leagues, this figurative sculpture depicting the two teammates, was dedicated November 1, 2005 at the entrance of Keyspan Stadium, home of the minor league team, the Cyclones.