Memory and Legacy in Dorian Hairston’s “Pretend the Ball is Named Jim Crow”

In his “Author’s Note” to Pretend the Ball is Named Jim Crow, Dorian Hairston details why he wrote a collection of poems about Josh Gibson and how baseball, with its “arbitrary yet clearly defined unwritten rules” mirrors society at large, especially in relation to issues of race, class, and gender. These “rules” organize the game, and they play a large role in how individuals approach game. Yet, these “rules” change over time, they evolve and slip away, paving the way for new “rules” that help it to grow. As Hairston puts it, “One of the most beautiful aspects of the game, however, is its capacity for change and its ability to lead American on a similar path.”

While baseball serves as the metaphor for the nation throughout Hairston’s collection, the narrative itself centers on Josh Gibson, “the greatest catcher to ever play the game of baseball.” It’s a collection that, like so many important works of literature and art, illuminate the spaces and individuals purposefully left in the shadows. Hairston lays this out when he writes about the dual lists of Negro League and “official” baseball records. Hairston states, “One list is spoken and understood by all to include the full spectrum of folks who have controlled the lore of the game. The other is written down, and though in black ink, it leaves out anything Black…