Muhammad Ali 1942 - 2016 - He was more than just a boxer | Eastern North Carolina Now

    His birth name was not how most people knew him. He cast off the shackles of his heritage and forged a new future under the name Muhammad Ali. In doing so, he became the most recognizable person on earth. He was often vain, sometimes outrageous, but always with a mischievous smile.

    I have never been prone to identify famous people as heroes. I always associated that term with military actions. One of the few that fell into that category in my childhood was Audie Murphy. Audie Murphy - A tragic hero 1924-1971

    In 1955, I was ten years old and had several uncles who served in World War II. His life story in the movie "To Hell and Back" made a big impression on me and naturally, Audie became a hero then and remains so today. At the time, his exploits in the European Theater were legendary earning him the Metal of Honor. Later, I was to learn of his battles with depression and his strong will to overcome addiction single handedly.

    Perhaps the only other real hero I had in the entertainment field was Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. As a young adult, I was amazed at his braggadocios spirit when he took on the meanest of all boxers, Sonny Liston and beat him in 1964; not once but twice. He was not a hero to me then but I admired his talent and his ability in the boxing ring.

    After his defeat of Liston, he announced that he had converted to Nation of Islam and changes his name to Muhammad Ali. That did not change my admiration for his boxing skills. Like most Americans then, if not now, I thought that was his right as an American citizen. I knew little of the Muslim religion then and not too much more now. I continued to follow his boxing career.

    I do not remember the exact date (later research shows it to be April 28, 1967) that he became a hero but I do remember the event that cemented his hero status for me. I was struggling with a soon to be doomed college career. I was in the student center watching the communal TV when the news came across that Ali had refused induction into the Army. I was not overly political at the time but to see this young man report to the induction center and refuse to step forward when his named was called for induction made a big impression.

    In 1967 there was a chasm forming in the United States about the Vietnam War. Many were burning draft cards, taking flight to Canada, and generally demonstrating against the war. I will add the obiligatory note that Emory University held a pro-Vietnam ralley that year. But all this was done for the most part by students who had the priviledge of a 2S student deferment. It is pretty easy to protest and bitch from within the protection of a college campus. The boxing commission immediately stripped him of his heavyweight boxing title. There is no doubt that he would have had a gravy train enlistment doing boxing exhibitions or goodwill tours. But to see this young man who was only three years older than me make a principled stand and then subject himself to the potential consequences of his decision made his actions even more meaningful to me. Somewhere in the melee that followed, he made the statement that "no Vietcong ever called me nigger".

    Some may disagree with his actions and his reasons, but any reasonable review of this man will show a man of deep convictions and character willing to pay the price for his decision. He submitted himself to the rule of law and vowed to take the consequences if convicted. He was no draft dodger but a principled believer in his religion.

    I do not judge Ali for some of his youthful excesses, which are well documented. His numerous affairs and derogatory statements about white people notwithstanding, that one act of bravery made me think again about more than just a boxing title. This young black man who was raised in the segregated city of Louisville, Kentucky, put his fate in the hands of the same government that would not let him eat at a lunch counter for most of his life.

    There is considerable disagreement about the tactics of the civil rights movement and the various tactics used by Martin Luther King Jr to address what was a corrosive practice in the south and most of the rest of the country. Nevertheless, two of the prime people who helped me to change my indoctrination about race were MLK and Ali.

    If you think about it a bit, you may agree that he was a product of the American dream. We have all been told that you can be anything you want to be in America if you just work hard, never quit and get up when you have been knocked down. It was easy for a nineteen-year-old white boy like me to see a bright future but I am not too sure that Cassius saw a future that bright.

    My evolution in racial beliefs did not come immediately but were the result of a gradual progression of life events. When my draft notice came in July of 1967, I never had a passing thought about not showing up and stepping forward. My family's principles left no option except to do you duty. I look back on my short military career as one of the most transformative times in my life. I went to basic training in Columbus, Georgia and trained with Negros, Latinos, and a more than a few bigoted rednecks. The experience taught me that human nature is pretty much the same regardless of race.

    Later in Vietnam, I reinforced the conscious decision not to be a bigoted racist. That was prompted by a black buddy named Bronte. A previous article covered my evolution and is somewhat duplicated in this post Here is a link to that post..

    When I heard the news recently, that Ali was admitted to the hospital with respiratory problems, I was saddened to see this aging (74) year old hero facing the challenges that old age and father time demands of us all.

    So, here is my tribute to this "All American Boy". He lived his life on his own terms, he stood the test of numerous obstacles in both health and social fields. His trash talking may be the model that Donald Trump currently uses. But missing from The Donald is that impish smile of Ali, which telegraphs that it was just that "Trash Talking" and nothing more. Without putting too much emphasis on this point, I would like to think it is possible to admire the values of someone that may disagree with your ideologies.

    The never quit mentality was more than evident in the three Ali / Frazier boxing matches which culminated with the Thriller in Manila. Both fighters fought for 14 rounds in what I think was the best boxing match in my life. When Frazier's corner would not let him come out for the 15th round, Frazier protested and Ali showed obvious relief as he slumped on his stool. There was no quit in either of these two men. An ailing Ali said afterwards that the fight "was the closest thing to dying that I know", and, when later asked if he had viewed the fight on videotape, reportedly said, "Why would I want to go back and see Hell?" After the fight, he cited Frazier as "the greatest fighter of all times next to me". Joe Frazier passed in 2011.

    Tears come easily to me now as I try to balance the scales of my life between resilience and sentiment. Looking back on the life of Ali brings a renewed faith in our country and the culture that allows individuals to adapt and overcome even the most severe obstacles before us. Some may have noticed that I used his given birth name for the first part of this article. That is not a sign of disrespect but an acknowledgement that while the world may have seen him then as an uppity colored boy, he saw himself as an individual who could be what he wanted to be. But he earned the right and respect to be called by his chosen name. He will forever be known as Muhammad Ali and Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. will be nothing more that a footnote in his biography.

    I resist the temptation to say there will never be another Ali, because I believe our country is full of such men and women. There may never be another boxer like the "The Greatest", but without a doubt in my mind, the American Spirit is still alive and well mainly because we had such men as Ali who stood the test and paid the price.

    There is not a better tribute to this man than that offered by the comedian Billy Crystal in 1992 at Muhammad Ali's 50th birthday celebration. It is a reprisal of the routine Billy did in 1980 and it still affects me today. As you can see this was before Ali began the long slow decline of Parkinson' Disease.

   

Fifteen Rounds

    He passed away tonight from the ravages of a broken body but I would like to think his spirit was just as strong as that twenty-five year old man who took on the powers that be and won.

May he rest in peace.