“I Got No Quarrel with The VietcongNo Vietcong Ever Called Me Nigger.” Sometimes words resonate through time. We hear them and immediately comprehend their importance; even if some don’t comprehend their value at that time. Muhammad Ali will chiefly be remembered as a charismatic and fearless boxing champion. Some, however, will also remember him as an advocate of social justice, speaking out against war, discrimination against African Americans, and support for peace and Islam. Whether as a prominent member of the sporting community or a fierce advocate for social change, Muhammad Ali will regardless be considered an influential figure in American cultural history.
Introduction
Muhammad Ali, born Cassius Marcellus Clay, in many ways represented the fear and evils suffered by Black people in American history. Though he was an Olympic champion, he realized very quickly that some businesses would still refuse him service because of the color of his skin.
Ali self-professed to be and was recognized as "the Greatest" and one of the world’s most beloved and celebrated icons.
The most prevalent years in his boxing career were between 1964 and 1974 where Ali consistently defeated other champions and predicted the rounds he would be victorious, and poetically described his greatness.
His public persona was brash, loud and confident, magnetic in his proclamations that he was ‘the greatest’ and attracting attention due to his sheer showmanship.
I remember seeing him celebrate his 50th birthday on television when I was nine years old, and being impressed with his brash, confident personality.
During that 50th birthday event, I saw all manner of important black figures come out to celebrate him, from Diana Ross to Sinbad to Nelson Mandela and more. Even white figures like Billy Crystal and Tony Danza arrived, showing the universal political appeal of Ali as a cultural figure.
Perhaps one of the most well-known elements of Ali’s life was his public status as a Muslim-American, an important figure in the Civil Rights Movement, and his opposition to the US government in the conducting of wars against foreign nations.
Muhammad Ali was an influential figure. He had a significant impact on the American people, especially when discussing the oppression of African Americans.
Ali was a social activist who fought inside and outside the ring, taking a stand against the Vietnam War without fear of losing his title or reputation; though he did lose it and the right to professionally box for 3 ½ years.
Muhammad Ali continued advocacy long after he retired, speaking out against the various wars fought in the 80s, 90s, and 2000s. He remained an advocate for peace and celebrated the virtues of Islam until his death.
Background
Cassius Marcellus Clay was born on January 17, 1942, in Kentucky. He was the son of Cassius Sr and Odessa Clay.
Later in 1954, at the age of 12, the eventual Ali became interested in learning how to fight and approached a police officer who was also a boxing coach at a neighboring Gym.
He gained attention through his boxing career in the early 1960's. However, after winning a gold medal at the Rome Olympics, he still endured discrimination and racism (Reed, 2004).
Muhammad Ali became a controversial figure because he refused to join the American armed forces during the Vietnam War. Similarly, he shocked much of the world when announcing his conversion to Islam and taking on the name of Muhammad Ali.
His charisma and courage have made Ali one of the most recognized and loved people in the world.
Muhammad Ali and his campaign against injustice
Through the influence of Malcolm X, Ali expressed his stand on the civil rights movement during his public performances in the 1960s.
Although Ali was a brutal fighter inside the ring, he promoted justice and peace nonviolently for everyone outside of it, tempering the two sides of his public persona in order to accomplish this goal.
He utilized his ego to express and speak his mind in public instead of conforming to the generally accepted second-class status of African Americans (Gorsevski & Butterworth, 2011).
Ali took a strong stance against imperialism in the United States and recognized this system as "the white power structure" (Chrisman, et al. 2012).
Ali became an advocate of "black pride" as he fought against ‘black oppression’ by whites in the United States (Chrisman, et al. 2012).
His social and political opinions were sometimes ideologically extreme and influenced by the racism exhibited in the Jim Crow South and even the Nation of Islam.
The connection between Muhammad Ali’s boxing career and race
Ali utilized sports as the only opportunity where blacks were in a position to assert themselves (Saeed, 2002).
Ali became a Black Nationalist and repeatedly asserted that blacks have to live in ‘their own black nation’ to achieve pride and fulfillment.
Ali became close friends with Malcolm X, chiefly due to their mutual Muslim faith and their desire to see discrimination against blacks ended (Roberts & Smith, 2016).
Malcolm X was Ali’s spiritual mentor in his conversion to Islam.
He strongly opposed integration with white culture and believed that American States such as Georgia or Alabama should be part of the Black Nation.
Ali was focused on fighting against the hypocrisy and injustices of ‘white Americans’ (Doyle, 2006).
However, he also showed American patriotism in which he described the United States of America as the best country in the world (Saeed, 2002).
That being said, he tempered that patriotism with a self-aware recognition of the flaws of the United States, and used his public platform to discuss them openly, radicalizing his identity as an “internal alien” in order to resist systemic oppression and institutions like racism and the military (Jones 2015, p. 266).
Muhammad Ali’s campaign against the war
Muhammad Ali's view against War was illustrated when he refused to join the American armed forces during the Vietnam War.
This led to the case Clay v. United States, in which Ali was forced to stand trial due to his refusal to be drafted into the War, due to his conscientious objection to the war (Roberts & Smith 2016, p. 304).
His membership in the Nation of Islam and the racial ideology were the contributing factor behind his rejection to engage into war.
In many ways, this fit the black radical masculinity that closely coded Ali’s identity, fighting white hegemonic masculinity by pointing out their role in social injustice and their opposition to it (Jones, 2015).
Instead, Ali pursued becoming and remaining the heavyweight champion and a defiant black nationalist (Chrisman et al. 2012).
Fundamentally, the Nation of Islam shaped his conscientious objection to fighting ‘people of color’ and ‘Asian brothers.’
Ali explained that engaging in war was a contradiction to his strong religious beliefs.
Ali asserted that he had no quarrel with the Vietnamese people and there was no reason to engage in war with them.
“Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go ten thousand 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?” (Ali, 2012).
He suggested, "My new job is freedom, justice, and equality for black folks, to bring them the knowledge of their true selves" (Ali, 2012, p.21).
The Appellate Court found him guilty, but in 1971 the Supreme Court of the United States overturned the decision unanimously, allowing him to go free.
Ali’s first boxing match in 43 months on October 25, 1970, in Atlanta, Georgia, was referreed to by Ali as his “day of judgment” (Smith 2015, p. 6).
Returning to boxing after more than three years out of the ring after his decision to dodge the draft, Ali drew incredible publicity and celebrity to the fight, with Sports Illustrated describing his audience as “the most startling assembly of black power and black money ever assembled” (Smith 2015, p. 6).
The crowds and attention that match provided proved Ali’s influence and power as a social justice advocate, given the publicity that had arisen due to his objection to the Vietnam War and his subsequent imprisonment.
Ali's persistent support for Islam and peace
Ali converted from Christianity to Muslim to show his support and solidarity with his ‘Muslim brothers.’
He took on a new identity and changed his name from Cassius Marcellus Clay to Muhammed Ali after joining the Nation of Islam.
He joined the Nation of Islam, also known as ‘the Black Muslims,’ and started to study its doctrine related to the Muslim Faith.
He believed that white people were more proficient with in their knowledge of Islam, and they would not let black people properly learn or comprehend it.
Ali proclaimed that he believed in peace and Allah but suggested that he would not like interacting with white neighborhoods.
Ali showed his support for Islam despite the fact that the country was hostile to the Muslim community (Reed, 2004).
For instance, the World Boxing Association stripped his title after converting to Islam and refusing to join the Armed Forces.
However, he was determined to risk his title and have a ‘valuable possession of conscience and peace. ‘
Having found peace within himself allowed him to perceive war as unjust and immoral.
Reed asserts, "Ali was torn between his civil duty and his religious obligation, and his internal dialogue would not allow him to disregard his loyalty to his faith" (2004, p.109).
Conclusion
The recent death of Muhammad Ali has reminded the public of the ways in which he shaped American culture, and provided a stellar example of the kind of aggressive passion for civil rights everyone should have.
Lighting the Olympic Torch in 1996 was, perhaps, the most important element of Ali’s social justice work, a potent symbol of the ways in which he advocated for social change and equality for everyone.
Ali expressed his stance on civil rights during his public performances in the 1960s.
Through his faith and conscience, Muhammad Ali became one of the most influential figures of peace in the Muslim community.
His fight inside and outside the ring made him a universally loved and admired heavyweight champion and fighter for social justice.
Ali aspired millions of individuals to believe in themselves and accomplish things that would be seen as impossible, including myself. I find him very meaningful as a role model, as he showed me the ways in which people could stand by their beliefs even when it coes them great harm to their career and their image. Muhammad Ali is one of the most well-known examples of a person who holds to the admirable principles of pacifism, faith and love despite great personal hardship.
References
Ali, M. (2012). Interviews: Muhammad Ali. The Black Scholar, 42(2), 14-21.
Chrisman, L., Cha-Jua, S. K., & Chude-Sokei, L. (2012). Introduction to Black Scholar classics: remembering the 1970s. The Black Scholar, 42(2), 3-7.
Doyle, K. (2006). Muhammad goes to Hollywood: Michael Mann's Ali as biopic. The Journal of Popular Culture, 39(3), 383-406.
Gorsevski, E. W., & Butterworth, M. L. (2011). Muhammad Ali's fighting words: The paradox of violence in nonviolent rhetoric. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 97(1), 50-73.
Jones, J. (2015). Black radical masculinities in American warfare: reconfiguring resistance in the body of Muhammad Ali towards exile. NORMA, 10(3-4), 265-280.
Reed, T. L. (2004). Peace profile: Muhammad Ali. Peace Review, 16(1), 107-111.
Roberts, R., & Smith, J. (2016). Blood Brothers: The Fatal Friendship Between Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X. Basic Books.
Saeed, Amid. "What's in a Name? Muhammad Ali and the Politics of Cultural Identity." Sport in Society 5, no. 3 (2002): 52-72.
Smith, J. M. (2015). The Resurrection: Atlanta, Racial Politics, and the Return of Muhammad
Ali. Southern Cultures, 21(2), 5-26.
