Talk:Muhammad Ali

Why is the "quarrel" quote truncated?

The BBC has the entire quote as: "Man, I ain't got no quarrel with them Viet Cong. No Vietcong ever called me nigger." http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/boxing/16146367 The second sentence provides powerful context for the first -- for his entire stance against the war.

Most of us who were 1-A were against the war, and only Ali's vanity and desire for continued wealth and boxing fame made him any different. Most of the 3 million of us who went to Vietnam would have preferred to live in a mansion instead of making about $100 a month, particularly if it involved less mortal danger than Vietnam and only required getting beat up once a year. Ali lost 5 bouts and, in reality, lost many more given to him by decision (e.g., the Young fight). Marciano, really only a light heavy, would probably have knocked Ali out just as he did Joe Louis, a similar fighter, when Louis was just slightly past prime at 37. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.49.20.187 (talk) 00:59, 29 October 2013 (UTC)

Fight for Social Justice

I would like to request an additional section to be added to the Personal Life section. I think this page is great, but I feel that Muhammad Ali's strive for social justice and involvement in the black power movement is slightly understated. I'd like to propose that the following be added under a new section in personal life. I appreciate your consideration.

Being born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1942, Cassius Clay was acutely aware of racial inequality. His mother, Mrs. Clay, recalls an instance in which a young, thirsty Cassius was denied a drink of water because of his color. She further recounted that this “really hurt him”, forcing him to recognize the invisible lines that excluded African Americans from mainstream society.

After Clay’s Olympic gold medal victory, he turned professional by signing with an affluent white business group from Louisville. At the time, white men dominated the business aspect of boxing and a young African American star needed wealthy benefactors to achieve success in the industry. Despite this, Clay consistently bumped up against poor treatment and inequality. “With my gold medal around my neck I couldn’t even get a burger in my home town.” Nonetheless, Clay’s professional career was spurred by his outspoken and turbulent behavior. He had a unique gift for promoting himself and his fights, making them relevant to both blacks and whites.

"Where do you think I’d be next week, if I didn’t know how to shout and holler and make the public take notice? I’d be poor and I’d probably be down in my home town, washing windows or running an elevator and saying “yes suh” and “no suh” and knowing my place. Instead, I’m one of the highest paid athletes in the world. Think about that. A southern coloured boy has made one million dollars.”

Clay understood that showmanship was a crucial aspect to the boxing industry. His blazen racial pride and colorful commentary made him a global icon. By declaring himself “The Greatest”, Clay was crossing racial boundaries and forcing fans to question the status quo.

In 1963, Ali still retained his birth name, Cassius Clay. However, his partnership with the publicly vilified Nation of Islam would alter his image and his role in the civil rights/black power movements. These two movements juxtaposed themselves. The civil rights movement promoted equal rights in the political sphere through peaceful protest, while the black power movement sought for African American militancy and independence to a certain extent. The Nation of Islam oriented itself strongly with the black power movement. Both movements were undeniably products of the racial consciousness, which had been pulling at Clay since he was a child.

Once the press caught wind that Cassius Clay had oriented himself with The Nation of Islam and Malcolm X, he began to receive a barrage of questions from the press. He once responded with “I’m a race man and every time I go to a Muslim meeting I get inspired.” Clay’s relationship with Malcolm X seemingly helped define his position on racial issues. Furthermore, Clay clearly enjoyed the Muslim teachings as they helped express his racial consciousness and frustration with society in the 1960s.

“I like the Muslims. I’m not going to get killed trying to force myself on people who don’t want me. I like my life. Integration is wrong. The white people don’t want integration. I don’t believe in forcing it, and the Muslims don’t believe in it. So what’s wrong with the Muslims?”

This quote in the Louisville Courier-Journal expresses Clay’s feelings in 1964 on racial progress. The civil rights movement was being met with violent racism from white southerners. Ali felt no need to push himself, or his race, closer to a group of people who didn’t want him. Instead, he wanted peace and independence from racist whites. Meanwhile, the press was turning on Clay as his first heavyweight title fight against Sonny Liston was approaching. Ali had been training in Miami and had been in close contact with Malcolm X who felt that the fight carried significant weight between the two contrasting racial equality approaches. “It was Allah’s intent for me to help Cassius prove Islam’s superiority before the world - through proving that mind can win over brawn.” Sonny Liston on the other hand, represented Christian African American culture and values that the civil rights movement relied upon closely. Clay won the fight and exuberantly proclaimed, “I am the greatest!” Thus, Clay established himself as an intelligent, talented and strategic boxer whose desires did not simply end with a payout.

On March 6, 1964 Cassius Clay took the name Muhammad Ali. Due to rifts between Malcolm X and The Nation of Islam, Ali lost contact with Malcolm, who had helped shape Ali into the fighter and person that he had become. With his victory over Liston, Ali rose even higher in international prestige, gaining recognition from the UN and various African heads of state. For the next three years he maintained his close connection with The Nation of Islam. Ali promoted black pride and strength against white repression. This stance was entirely progressive for the 1960s as many African Americans were continuing their peaceful efforts to reason and reconcile with an unequal democracy.

Ali, in 1967, refused to be drafted into the United States military to fight in Vietnam. He openly spoke out about fighting for a nation that refused to fight for him. This message resonated with the black community, but further vilified his public image as anti-American and anti-white.

In the 1970s Ali re-examined his religious and political beliefs and denounced The Nation of Islam, choosing a more orthodox form of Muslim instead. Nonetheless, Ali remains a powerful figure when looking back at the black power movement. He represented the cutting edge of the African American racial consciousness and a deep frustration with mainstream society, which had treated African Americans so poorly.

Kbullington (talk) 02:47, 6 November 2013 (UTC)

Not done: Welcome. I can't add this to the article; the content overlaps a great deal of the information already covered in the article. It would be better to find a way to blend the new content to the existing content. Thanks, Celestra (talk) 03:09, 6 November 2013 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 8 January 2014

I would like to add the following picture:

Muhammad Ali horses around with a fan at a South Miami book signing event in 1993

Thank you for your consideration.

Bloggeraccountusa (talk) 04:54, 8 January 2014 (UTC)

• Not done: please make your request in a "change X to Y" format. Technical 13 (talk) 20:35, 8 January 2014 (UTC)

Ali

Ali is today widely regarded not only for the skills he displayed in the ring but for the values he exemplified outside of it: religious freedom, racial justice and the triumph of principle over expedience.

Muhammad Ali routinely disparaged other religions, particularly Christianity ("a slave religion") and denigrated black opponents in racial terms: Ernie Terrell (an "uncle Tom"), Joe Frazier (an "uncle Tom", a "white man's champion", an 'other type' negro and a "gorilla"), Floyd Patterson (a "yellow negro" who fought for "white America"), George Foreman ("I'm going to beat your Christian ass you white flag waving bitch, you" and "He is white America, Christianity, the flag, the white man, pork chops").

Muhammad Ali's views on interracial relationships (from his 1975 Playboy interview):

ALI: A black man should be killed if he's messing with a white woman.

PLAYBOY: And what if a Muslim woman wants to go out with non-Muslim blacks -- or white men, for that matter?

ALI: Then she dies. Kill her, too.

The Nation of Islam, particularly under Elijiah Muhammad's leadership, was a fringe, murderous cult akin to a black KKK (it is now classified as a hate group by the SPLC). They believed in, amongst other things, UFOs and the extermination of white people. That is, when they were not busy eliminating each other. Their members murdered Malcolm X and the family of Hamaas Abdul Khaalis (including his 9 day old son), amongst many others. For over a decade Muhammad Ali was a devout member of and the poster boy for this organization. Ali even addressed a KKK rally at the NOI's behest:

When the day came, Ali obliged. He turned up at the rally and stood on the stage, faced by some of the most evil hate-filled men in existence and told them that they were kind of right. That racial mixing was bad, according to him. He told them how the Nation Of Islam, and he himself, also shared their ideals on racial segregation and how "eagles should be with eagles" and so forth. Of course, as Muhammad Ali became one of the most well-known and well-loved sportsmen of history, this embarrassing event was swept under the rug.

On Malcolm X: The article states: Ali's friendship with Malcolm X soon ended as Malcolm split with the NOI a couple of weeks after Ali joined, and Ali remained with the Nation

After his [Malcolm's] split with the NOI, Ali publicly shunned Malcolm when the latter tried to embrace him during a chance encounter in Ghana. Malcolm was coming under increasing pressure from the NOI. His house was firebombed. Malcolm's wife pleaded with Ali: "You see it. You know. Stop it if you have any feeling at all." Ali's response: "I aint doin nothin to him." After Malcolm's murder, Ali coldly dismissed him when his name was mentioned. According to Malcolm's wife, Ali's betrayal "hurt Malcolm more than any other person turning away that I know of." According to Sunni Khalid "Ali threw Malcolm away like a pork chop. Even today those who really know can never forgive him.".

Ali's regrets are 40 years too late. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.157.235.4 (talk) 01:11, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

Doesn't sound much like a man who "exemplified the values of religious freedom, racial justice and the triumph of principle over expedience".

Reach

I don't think Ali had a 200cm reach. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.126.77.203 (talk) 17:01, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

Split "Leagcy" into "Honors" and "Legacy"?

Because now they are kind of mixed.

T

85.166.162.202 (talk) 03:32, 23 February 2014 (UTC)