On April 28, 1967, boxing legend Muhammad Ali refused to be drafted into the Vietnam War. He was a Muslim and cited his religious beliefs as his reason. But he also believed that as a Black man, he could NOT fight for a racist country!
And he faced serious consequences.
Ali was banned from boxing for three years. The federal government even took away his Heavyweight title! But it wasn’t just the U.S. government that disagreed with his decision.
In fact, in 1964, Jim Brown, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and other Black athletes met to “support” Ali. But many of them WEREN’T on his side, and were actually there to convince him to stray from his values!
Some thought Ali should be “patriotic.” Others knew they’d gain money if he was eligible to keep playing.
They even tried to persuade Ali to perform boxing exhibitions for U.S. troops, in exchange for his charges being dropped. But they underestimated him.
Despite their arguments, and his livelihood and reputation at risk, Ali refused to back down.
From the U.S. government to even his own people, Ali experienced a lesson we can all learn from: people may appear to support you, but are actually against what you believe in. But like Ali proved, how you stand up for Black liberation is YOUR prerogative!