-Most of us are familiar with such sports figures as Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. For years, however, African Americans were not welcomed in most American sports.
Write a feature article for a sports magazine on the struggles African Americans faced as they tried to compete in major sports.
1. When were they first allowed to compete with white players?
2. Were they welcomed by other players? By fans?
3. What were traveling conditions like? What other difficulties did they face?
4. Why are there few blacks playing sports such as ice hockey, golf, and tennis?
5. Do more African Americans play basketball and football just because they are more popular sports? Or might there be other reasons?
6. Why are there few black owners or managers of professional teams? Give your own opinion.
7. Who are some of the African- American athletes who came after the groundbreakers? Did any of them have to struggle as well?
7. Who are some of the African- American athletes who came after the groundbreakers? Did any of them have to struggle as well?
Explore the articles under the subject Sports to familiarize yourself with the subject. End with a thoughtful examination of the current situation.
Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. also known as Muhammad Ali was the first fighter to win the world heavyweight championship on three separate occasions; defending it nineteen times. When Clay was 12 years old, he took up boxing under the tutelage of Louisville policeman Joe Martin. After advancing through the amateur ranks, he won a gold medal in the 175-pound division at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome and began a professional career under the guidance of the Louisville Sponsoring Group, a syndicate composed of 11 wealthy white men.
On February 25, 1964, he challenged Sonny Liston for the heavyweight championship of the world. Liston was widely regarded as the most intimidating, powerful fighter of his era. Clay was a decided underdog. But in one of the most stunning upsets in sports history, Clay knocked out Liston to become the new champion. Two days later, he shocked the boxing establishment again by announcing that he had accepted the teachings of the Nation of Islam. On March 6, 1964, he took the name Muhammad Ali, which was given to him by his spiritual mentor, Elija Muhammad.
For the next three years, Ali dominated boxing as thoroughly and magnificently as any fighter ever had. In a May 25, 1965, rematch against Liston, he emerges with a first-round knockout victory. On November 14, 1966, Ali fought Cleveland Williams. Over the course of three rounds, Ali landed more that 100 punches, scored four knockdowns, and was hit a total of three times.
On April 28, 1967, he refused induction into the U.S. Army at the height of the war in Vietnam. Exemptions from military service on religious grounds were available to qualifying conscientious objectors who were opposed to war in any form; Ali was not eligible for such an exemption because he acknowledged that he would be willing to participate in an Islamic holy war.
He was then stripped of his championship and prohibited from fighting by every state athletic commission in the U.S. for three and a half years. In addition, he was criminally indicted and convicted of refusing induction into the U.S. armed forces and sentenced to five years in prison on June 20, 1967. He remained free on bail and four years passed before his conviction was unanimously overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.
In October 1970, he was allowed to return to boxing but his skills had eroded. The legs that had allowed him to “dance” for 15 rounds without stopping no longer carried him as surely around the ring. His reflexes, while still superb, were no longer as fast as they had once been.
Over the next two and a half years Ali fought nine times in bouts that showed him to be a courageous fighter but a fighter on the decline. The most notable of these bouts occurred on October 1, 1975, when Ali and Joe Frazier met in the Philippines to do battle for the third time. Ali was declared victor of the “Thrilla in Manila” when Frazier’s corner called a halt to the bout after 14 brutal rounds.
The final performances of Ali’s ring career were sad to behold; he lost his title to Leon Spinks in 1978, seven months later, Ali regained the championship with a 15-round victory over Spinks after which he retired then made an ill-advised comeback and suffered a severe beating from Larry Holmes in a bout that was stopped after 11 rounds.
Ali’s place in boxing history as one of the greatest fighters is ever secure. His most tangible ring assets were speed, superb footwork, and the ability to take a punch; most importantly, he had courage and all the other intangibles that go into making a great fighter. His later years have been marked by physical decline. Damage to his brain caused by blows to the head has resulted in slurred speech, slowed movement, and other symptoms of Parkinson syndrome.
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