Both men were boxers. Everybody knows
Ali was an incredible athlete, Olympic gold medal winner, three-time
heavyweight champ. But of course his influence transcended
boxing. He seemed larger than life.
My dad fought
Golden Gloves as a young man. I don’t know how many boxing matches he won
because, like many men of his generation, he was reluctant to place himself in
the spotlight. But as a little kid I prevailed upon him to give me details of
some of his exploits.
One of my favorites: Dad came home late
one night and surprised two men
burglarizing his house. He took one guy out with a piece of firewood, and the
other with his fists. He put them in the hospital. Dad won that one,
though no press conference was called.
Ali’s fame had much to do with the
volatile 60’s and the unpopularity of the Vietnam War. He refused induction
into the Army, citing his conversion to Islam. He was convicted of draft
evasion and stripped of his heavyweight title. He appealed the verdict, and the
case went all the way to the Supreme Court, where it was reversed and he was
granted conscientious objector status.
The people who came to admire him saw
courage of conviction and trail-blazing leadership. Others like my dad didn’t think it was heroic to shirk
your duty.
Muhammad Ali’s conversion to Islam paved
the way for many African Americans, and no doubt others, to look with favor on
the prophet Mohammed. Ali became a world-wide ambassador for Islam. My dad
became a Christian as a young man, practiced his faith quietly, and taught me
that going to church was how a man conducted his life.
This is probably a non sequitur, but I
feel like mentioning that since the year 2000 there have been over 61,000 terrorist attacks, killing more than 140,000 people. The overwhelming majority of these murders were committed by
the religion of peace that Ali helped popularize.
Mohammed Ali was married four times and
had at least nine children, two of whom were born out of wedlock. I heard him
in a TV interview years ago when he was asked about his liaisons with other women.
He was dismissive of the question, and implied it was based in racism.
This week I read several poignant
accounts of Mohammad Ali’s estrangement from his only son. Ali, Jr. is in his 40’s and lives in poverty. My Dad and Mom had a strong marriage, and I experienced first-hand the security a child has when he knows his parents love one another.
I don’t know what an athletic, outgoing,
achiever of a man like my dad thought about adopting a sensitive, bookish and
introverted little boy like me. But he had a way of making me feel loved and
appreciated even though I was not him.
Dad taught me to work hard, to fight for
your family, and to let the ones you love know they’re precious to you. He was
not famous and when he died, there was no network coverage.
But when I think about someone to
pattern your life after, for me it’s an easy choice. He would never have said
this about himself, but I can. Dad, you’re
the greatest.
