On the morning of the 4th June the world awoke to the news that Muhammad Ali boxer, freedom fighter and global icon, once known as “the most famous man on the planet,” had passed into the Ancestral realm, aged 74. He is survived by three of his four wives and nine children.
The international outpouring in response to the death of “The Greatest” revealed two polarising perspectives – global humanitarian whose passing warrants a multi-faith/race/creed service with a eulogy read by the likes of ex-US president Bill Clinton and comedian Billy Crystal verses courageous Black Power Activist who fearlessly railed against white injustice. Some narratives, furrowing a similar path to that attributed to Omowale Malcolm X try and embrace both elements within the context of an evolutionary epiphany.
Certain facts of his life are undoubtedly too well known to require any detailed retelling. Yet it is important to note that like his later Jegna (“mentor”) Omowale Malcolm X, he was born of Garveyite parents, providing a helpful context for his embrace of Black Nationalism. (1)
It is not an overestimation to say that there has never been a figure, let alone an athlete quite like Muhammad Ali. Whether one considers him to be “The Greatest” boxer of all time or not, with his lightning fast feet and fists (and wit to match) he certainly deserves to be in the conversation. However, it is his activities outside the ring that identify him as such a revolutionary icon. There was his announcement of his change of name and membership of the Nation Of Islam, then considered by some (European and even Afrikan) as a subversive, white-hating cult, right after he “shook up world” by winning the world heavyweight title.
With his 1967 refusal to serve in the US army to fight in Vietnam he put not only his boxing title on the line, but also his livelihood, his reputation and, in the era of the Counter Intelligence Programme that that sought to destroy the Black Power Movement – his life. He was unequivocal in his defiance:
“Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on Brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights? No I’m not going 10,000 miles from home to help murder and burn another poor nation simply to continue the domination of white slave masters of the darker people the world over. This is the day when such evils must come to an end. I have been warned that to take such a stand would cost me millions of dollars. But I have said it once and I will say it again. The real enemy of my people is here. I will not disgrace my religion, my people or myself by becoming a tool to enslave those who are fighting for their own justice, freedom and equality.… If I thought the war was going to bring freedom and equality to 22 million of my people they wouldn’t have to draft me, I’d join tomorrow. I have nothing to lose by standing up for my beliefs. So I’ll go to jail, so what? We’ve been in jail for 400 years.” (2)
Arguable, few activists, let alone sports stars would have made such a stance. Not only did Ali pay a heavy financial cost, many pundits believe that boxing lost the opportunity to see him at his very best due the three-year ban imposed upon him. Nevertheless, he inspired activists and athletes alike. He stance buttressed the Black Power Movement which was inspiring more and more athletes and was a direct precursor to the Olympic Project for Human Rights out of which came the iconic Black Power salutes by Tommie Smith, John Carlos and others at the 1968 Olympic Games.
Even as his boxing prowess declined he remained intellectually sharp as typified by his incendiary duels with UK chat show host Michael Parkinson. It is indeed ironic that Ali’s renowned quick reflexes and sharp mind were blunted by Parkinson’s Disease, allegedly from blows endured in the boxing ring, although some, like blogger Kinshasa, suggest something rather more sinister:
“As a Black Nationalist, Ali couldn’t be allowed to become that prominent, and it is my belief that the government injected Muhammad Ali with MPTP (methyl phenyl tetrahydropyridine) to give him Parkinson’s to silence his gospel that would have changed the world unprecedentedly.” (3)
It was in this Parkinson’s era that ushered in ‘mainstream’ acceptance to the extent he reportedly endorsed the 1984 re-election of Black Power arch-enemy Ronald Reagan to the US presidency. (4) But his immense contribution and sacrifice to the forward march of Afrikan people remained in our hearts and minds. He was the yardstick against which all that followed would be measured. As an indication of how far there is still to go, 50 years ago Ali declared that we were still in jail. So while sportswriter Dave Zirin argues that “Serena Williams Is Today’s Muhammad Ali,” (5) today, the plantation remains intact even if it is populated with, in the words of sportswriter William C Rhoden, “forty million dollar slaves”:
“Contemporary black athletes have ridden the coattails of protest movements, benefiting from the sacrifices of the [Paul] Robesons and [Jackie] Robinsons and Jim Browns and Muhammad Alis, but have been content to be symbolic markers of progress rather than activists in their own right, pushing progress forward. They have been unwilling to collectively rock the money boat. Ironically this new lack of interest in the larger world has occurred just at the moment in their evolution when black athletes have more economic muscle and cultural influence than ever. At a time when they could actually ownthe boat…” (6)
(1) Bingham, Howard L and Wallace, Max (2013) Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight: Cassius Clay vs. the United States of America, M Evans. p 15(2) Marqusee, Mike (1999) Redemption Song: Muhammad Ali and the Spirit of the Sixties, Verso p. 214.(3) Kinshasa (24/01/2012) The Ali Conspiracy. https://readquestionmark.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/the-ali-conspiracy/(4) United Press International (03/10/1984) CAMPAIGN NOTES; Muhammad Ali Switches His Support to Reagan. http://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/03/us/campaign-notes-muhammad-ali-switches-his-support-to-reagan.html(5) Zirin Dave (14/07/2015) Serena Williams Is Today’s Muhammad Ali. http://www.thenation.com/article/serena-williams-is-todays-muhammad-ali/(6) Rhoden, William C (2006) Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete, Three Rivers Press. p. 217
So tonight we ask the question:
What is the true legacy of Muhammad Ali?
1. Was he really “The Greatest”?
2. Can Muhammad Ali be simultaneously embraced by freedom fighters and multi-faith/race/creed society?
3. Are todays athletes largely “forty million dollar slaves”?
4. Is there more to the Parkinson’s Disease illness than meets the eye?
5. Is Serena Williams really today’s Muhammad Ali?
6. Are Bill Clinton and Billy Crystal the right people to read his Eulogy?
Our very special guests:
Bro. Ldr. Mbandaka: Resident guest who is Spiritual Leader of the Alkebu-Lan Revivalist Movement and UNIA-ACL Ambassador for the UK and national co-Chair of the interim National Afrikan People’s Parliament. Bro. Ldr is a veteran activist of over 30 years standing, a featured columnist in The Whirlwind newspaper and author of Mosiah Daily Affirmations and Education: An Africentric Guide To Excellence.
Bro. Eneka Quamina: Presenter, journalist and sports enthusiast, he is the face of ‘Neeks Sports’, a multimedia sports channel launch in 2012. Filled with vast information, facts, figures and a strong opinion on a wide range of topics, he is always in the right place at the right time when it comes to a good sport debate. Aside from presenting ‘Neeks Sports’ since 2012, he is a Sports Writer in The Whirlwind newspaper and avid blogger on a number of sites. He brings knowledge and character to the team from a supporter’s perspective, yet professional standpoint.
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