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| Malcolm X taking a picture of Ali |
I woke up today to the
news that the great Muhammad Ali, who had suffered so terribly from Parkinson’s
disease, had died aged 74. This was
before I set out for an anti-fascist demonstration that wasn’t in Brighton.
news that the great Muhammad Ali, who had suffered so terribly from Parkinson’s
disease, had died aged 74. This was
before I set out for an anti-fascist demonstration that wasn’t in Brighton.
I felt a sadness that
I haven’t felt since John Lennon was murdered in 1980. Muhammad Ali was part of my life. He was the greatest ever heavyweight boxer. He was so quick and agile that he boxed
without a guard, merely flicking his head back to avoid his opponent’s
punch. He was cocky, sure of himself and
had a way with words that few others could match. He literally floated like a butterfly and
stung like a bee.
I haven’t felt since John Lennon was murdered in 1980. Muhammad Ali was part of my life. He was the greatest ever heavyweight boxer. He was so quick and agile that he boxed
without a guard, merely flicking his head back to avoid his opponent’s
punch. He was cocky, sure of himself and
had a way with words that few others could match. He literally floated like a butterfly and
stung like a bee.
I first watched his
second match against Sony Liston, which he won with a first round
knock-out. I watched many of his subsequent bouts, all of which he won. Although politically he moved
to the right as he got older, endorsing Ronald Reagan’s reelection in 1984, in his youth Ali was the personification of the
Black Power movement.
second match against Sony Liston, which he won with a first round
knock-out. I watched many of his subsequent bouts, all of which he won. Although politically he moved
to the right as he got older, endorsing Ronald Reagan’s reelection in 1984, in his youth Ali was the personification of the
Black Power movement.
In particular his
refusal in 1967 to serve in Vietnam, which resulted in his being stripped of
his heavyweight boxing title, was a courageous decision at a time when
opposition to the war was still in its infancy. Ali’s comment that the Vietcong weren’t his enemy and that no Vietcong had called him nigger or lynched Black people was inspirational. It cut through the nationalist crap that says it is a crime not to support your own ruling class and establishment and that the foreigner is your enemy.
refusal in 1967 to serve in Vietnam, which resulted in his being stripped of
his heavyweight boxing title, was a courageous decision at a time when
opposition to the war was still in its infancy. Ali’s comment that the Vietcong weren’t his enemy and that no Vietcong had called him nigger or lynched Black people was inspirational. It cut through the nationalist crap that says it is a crime not to support your own ruling class and establishment and that the foreigner is your enemy.
Even whilst his body
was still warm he has been adopted by the white establishment with his
radicalism gutted. The article below makes this point trenchantly
was still warm he has been adopted by the white establishment with his
radicalism gutted. The article below makes this point trenchantly
Tony Greenstein
History says we’ll try and forget the boxing legend’s
radicalism. We shouldn’t.
radicalism. We shouldn’t.
04/06/2016
Maxwell Strachan
Senior Editor, The Huffington Post
Senior Editor, The Huffington Post
Mere
minutes after Muhammad
Ali died on Friday at the age of 74, presumptive Republican presidential
nominee Donald Trump
called the boxing legend a “great
champion” and “wonderful guy” in
a Twitter post.
minutes after Muhammad
Ali died on Friday at the age of 74, presumptive Republican presidential
nominee Donald Trump
called the boxing legend a “great
champion” and “wonderful guy” in
a Twitter post.
 |
| Harry Benson via Getty Images Heavyweight Boxing Champion of the World, Cassius Clay, who later changed his name to Muhammad Ali, in 1964. |
Muhammad Ali is dead at 74! A truly great
champion and a wonderful guy. He will be missed by all!
champion and a wonderful guy. He will be missed by all!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 4,
2016
2016
The
tweet
provoked swift and justifiable anger. On its face, what made the
remark so despicable was that it came from Trump, a man who has peddled
Islamophobia consistently throughout his racially and religiously charged
political campaign for personal gain. In December, Trump called on the U.S. to ban all Muslims from entering the
United States. Around that same time, he implied that there were no Muslim sports heroes at all.
And now, here he was, moments after the death of the most prominent Muslim
athlete of all time, hoping you’d forget those two facts and let him take
advantage of the moment.
tweet
provoked swift and justifiable anger. On its face, what made the
remark so despicable was that it came from Trump, a man who has peddled
Islamophobia consistently throughout his racially and religiously charged
political campaign for personal gain. In December, Trump called on the U.S. to ban all Muslims from entering the
United States. Around that same time, he implied that there were no Muslim sports heroes at all.
And now, here he was, moments after the death of the most prominent Muslim
athlete of all time, hoping you’d forget those two facts and let him take
advantage of the moment.
It
was, depending on what you think of the businessman, either willfully ignorant
or shamelessly cynical, requiring the sort of unique disregard for the past
that makes Trump Trump. But as I sat last night looking at the reality TV
personality’s tweet, I found myself thinking that what made Trump’s sentiment
so truly disturbing was that it actually wasn’t out of line at all. Rather, it
was and is right in line with a long-running tradition in U.S. history: whitewashing the radicalism of black Americans.
was, depending on what you think of the businessman, either willfully ignorant
or shamelessly cynical, requiring the sort of unique disregard for the past
that makes Trump Trump. But as I sat last night looking at the reality TV
personality’s tweet, I found myself thinking that what made Trump’s sentiment
so truly disturbing was that it actually wasn’t out of line at all. Rather, it
was and is right in line with a long-running tradition in U.S. history: whitewashing the radicalism of black Americans.
Throughout
U.S. history, white Americans have toned down the life stories of radical
people of color so that they can celebrate them as they want them to be, not as
they were. It is why we first think of “I
Have A Dream“ when we hear the name Martin Luther King Jr., and not his opposition to the Vietnam War. Narratives are altered.
Complex people simplified. Revolutionary ideas watered down, wrapped and
packaged with a bow for mainstream America.
U.S. history, white Americans have toned down the life stories of radical
people of color so that they can celebrate them as they want them to be, not as
they were. It is why we first think of “I
Have A Dream“ when we hear the name Martin Luther King Jr., and not his opposition to the Vietnam War. Narratives are altered.
Complex people simplified. Revolutionary ideas watered down, wrapped and
packaged with a bow for mainstream America.
Already,
there are signs that people will waste no time trying to do the same with Ali.
In the hours since his death, many people, most of them white, have taken to
their various social media platforms to declare that Ali transcended race. The phrase is intended as a compliment,
as a way of saying he was beloved by all, but comes across as odd to many
people — funny, isn’t it, how you never hear about Steve Jobs or Peyton Manning
transcending race? In truth, the phrase is naive, bathed in white privilege.
And most importantly, it is an eraser. Saying Ali transcended race banishes his
long history of being uncompromisingly, beautifully black to the footnotes,
just as the anti-Muslim Trump’s celebration of Ali whitewashes the boxer’s
history as a proud Muslim man.
there are signs that people will waste no time trying to do the same with Ali.
In the hours since his death, many people, most of them white, have taken to
their various social media platforms to declare that Ali transcended race. The phrase is intended as a compliment,
as a way of saying he was beloved by all, but comes across as odd to many
people — funny, isn’t it, how you never hear about Steve Jobs or Peyton Manning
transcending race? In truth, the phrase is naive, bathed in white privilege.
And most importantly, it is an eraser. Saying Ali transcended race banishes his
long history of being uncompromisingly, beautifully black to the footnotes,
just as the anti-Muslim Trump’s celebration of Ali whitewashes the boxer’s
history as a proud Muslim man.
Is it
okay to say that Muhammad Ali “transcended
his race” & erase his clear commitment to & embracing of blackness?
pic.twitter.com/EsKB2rYBmt
okay to say that Muhammad Ali “transcended
his race” & erase his clear commitment to & embracing of blackness?
pic.twitter.com/EsKB2rYBmt
— deray mckesson (@deray) June 4, 2016
You
can have broad appeal without transcending race. Prince and Ali, for example,
reveled in their blackness. You can’t erase that.
can have broad appeal without transcending race. Prince and Ali, for example,
reveled in their blackness. You can’t erase that.
— roxane gay (@rgay) June 4, 2016
So
today, before it is too late, let’s get one thing straight: Muhammad Ali was a
revolutionary black man, and proud of it. He opposed the Vietnam
War at a time when it was so unpopular and career-threatening to do
so. He proposed reparations by another name, saying in the 1960s that
the U.S. government should take $25 billion meant for the Vietnam War and
instead use it to build black Americans homes in the South. Ali was so
politically radical that Jackie Robinson once called him a “tragedy,”
and the Nation of Islam eventually distanced itself from him. In the 20th
century, former Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee chairman Stokely
Carmichael said “the FBI viewed Ali as more of a threat“ than himself. In
the 21st, it was revealed that the NSA had wiretapped his conversations. And still Ali never
relented in his convictions — black until death, first and foremost.
today, before it is too late, let’s get one thing straight: Muhammad Ali was a
revolutionary black man, and proud of it. He opposed the Vietnam
War at a time when it was so unpopular and career-threatening to do
so. He proposed reparations by another name, saying in the 1960s that
the U.S. government should take $25 billion meant for the Vietnam War and
instead use it to build black Americans homes in the South. Ali was so
politically radical that Jackie Robinson once called him a “tragedy,”
and the Nation of Islam eventually distanced itself from him. In the 20th
century, former Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee chairman Stokely
Carmichael said “the FBI viewed Ali as more of a threat“ than himself. In
the 21st, it was revealed that the NSA had wiretapped his conversations. And still Ali never
relented in his convictions — black until death, first and foremost.
“I was determined to be one nigger that the white man
didn’t get,” Ali once said. “Go on and join something. If it isn’t the Muslims, at least join the
Black Panthers. Join something bad.”
didn’t get,” Ali once said. “Go on and join something. If it isn’t the Muslims, at least join the
Black Panthers. Join something bad.”
Ali
didn’t transcend race, because he didn’t want to. History indicates we’ll try
and forget all that, and one day after his death, there are clear signs that
many people are already trying to do so. But we shouldn’t. We really
shouldn’t.
didn’t transcend race, because he didn’t want to. History indicates we’ll try
and forget all that, and one day after his death, there are clear signs that
many people are already trying to do so. But we shouldn’t. We really
shouldn’t.
Posted in Blog
