{"id":34707,"date":"2016-06-09T12:40:21","date_gmt":"2016-06-09T17:40:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/?p=34707"},"modified":"2016-06-28T13:18:21","modified_gmt":"2016-06-28T18:18:21","slug":"from-the-archives-ali-proves-real-champion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/from-the-archives-ali-proves-real-champion\/","title":{"rendered":"From the archives: Ali proves real champion"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Editor’s note: This story<\/a> was published in the UWM Post on April 2, 1971, two days after heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali visited the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee campus. The visit came shortly before the Supreme Court overturned Ali’s\u00a0conviction\u00a0for refusing to be inducted into the armed forces in 1967. The Milwaukee Journal also covered<\/a> Ali’s visit. Ali died June 3 at age 74, and a memorial service is scheduled for Friday, June 10.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Muhammed Ali may have lost the heavyweight title to Joe Frazier, but if the sentiments of his audience are any measure, he’s still the champ.<\/p>\n

Ali talked to an enthusiastic crowd of about 800 in the Union Wednesday night as part of a national college tour to keep in “personal touch\u201d with students and fans.<\/p>\n

Ali arrived here Tuesday night in his own bus. He and his companions spent the night in the bus, parked in the lot behind Mitchell Hall.<\/p>\n

In a press conference Ali said boxing introduced him to the real fight of \u201cfreedom, justice and equality for 20 million black people.\u201d His role, he explained, is to lead his people to the teaching of Elijah Muhammed and the black Muslim religion.<\/p>\n

Ali was expelled from the Muslim sect of Elijah Muhammed because they do not believe in boxing. He said he intended to quit fighting after his rematch with Joe Frazier, to be held in Los Angeles sometime after the first of next year.<\/p>\n

Ali claimed he didn\u2019t lose the last fight, because it was judged on points. He said he watched a slow-motion film of the fight and counted five of his hits to every punch Frazier delivered.<\/p>\n

He also stressed that he wanted the next fight judged by international referees, to ensure a fair bout.<\/p>\n

Asked if he thought he was destined to be what he is today, Ali answered, \u201cYes, God blessed me to be the greatest athlete in the world,\u201d and allowed him to champion the true cause, freedom for the black people.<\/p>\n

His assessment of the American fight game? \u201cIt\u2019s a rough game, but the American people like to see blood and violence.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the return bout, Ali said he would quit the ring. He\u2019s been fighting since he was 12 years old, for 19 years. At his lecture later that evening in the Union ballroom, a little boy asked Ali how he became a boxer.<\/p>\n

Ali said that when he was 12, someone stole his bicycle and he started training for the day when he would find the thief.\u00a0 The thief was never found and Ali never stopped training.<\/p>\n

He said he doesn\u2019t regret being a fighter. \u201cIt introduced me to the real fight.\u201d<\/p>\n

The real fight, he emphasized, was for black freedom. The fight will be won only with black wisdom.<\/p>\n

Integration should be, but first \u201cwe (the black people) have to integrate ourselves and we have to become one.\u201d Right now, he said, \u201cwe are broken into many pieces.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 1971, the racial situation is worse than it was 20 years ago, Ali said.<\/p>\n

Ali accused the United States of injustice for the black people. \u201cThis country should punish all the way they punish the blacks,\u201d Ali said.<\/p>\n

He said is was unjust that George Hamilton didn\u2019t go in the army. When he tried to avoid the draft, Ali lost his championship title and faced imprisonment. His case is on appeal.<\/p>\n

Ali said he wouldn\u2019t mind going to jail, because he would be with his brothers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m ready to die for my people now, but not for someone else (the Vietnamese),\u201d Ali said.<\/p>\n

Ali\u2019s day ended with an evening lecture on \u201cThe Purpose of Life\u201d in the Union ballroom, packed with about 1,500 fans.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not action that makes a thing right or wrong, but purpose,\u201d Ali contended.<\/p>\n

He also read two poems concerning a black youth whose purpose in life \u201cfor was to die fighting.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the lecture, Ali fielded audience questions almost as well as Frazier\u2019s punches.<\/p>\n

The only question that seemed to give Ali any problem was: Do black people have any obligation to the United States?<\/p>\n

\u201cCollege professors would catch hell for that one,\u201d Ali answered. \u201cIt\u2019s according to who you are,\u201d he continued before asking the questioner to restate the question and define \u201cobligation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo we owe\u2026\u201d the questioner began.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Ali interrupted, \u201cThe U.S. owes us back wages for 400 years of slavery.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ali\u2019s visit was sponsored by the center for Afro-American studies and University student government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali visited the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1971, and the UWM Post chronicled his comments about justice and race relations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40008,"featured_media":34769,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","uwm_wg_additional_authors":[]},"categories":[174],"tags":[],"section":[122,126],"display_categories":[],"related-coverage":[],"uwmnews-feed":[],"class_list":["post-34707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","section-campus-community","section-campus-news"],"uwm_unpublish_requested":false,"yoast_head":"\nFrom the archives: Ali proves real champion<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali visited the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1971, and the UWM Post chronicled his comments about justice and race relations.\" 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