Muhammad Ali 1942-2016

On Behalf of | Jun 4, 2016 | Assault |

The sports world and the rest of the planet have lost a true gem of a man.  Muhammad Ali, born Cassius Clay has passed away at the age of 74.  The self-proclaimed “The Greatest” pugilist that ever lived, he was a man that stood up for what he believed in.

The thing is, if he were to have gotten in a fist fight in today’s world when he was younger, there is no doubt that his hands would have been considered as dangerous as a gun.

Ask Mike Tyson, who has spent time in prison for hitting a complainant with his hands and charged and convicted of the equivalent of Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon.  Tyson went through a very public divorce with the famous actress Robin Givens in the nineties.  That mess of a divorce was full of domestic violence, family violence and tons of spousal abuse.

Ali was also in the media during his time.  Rather than being in the papers for domestic violence, people in the 60s and 70s often read about his decision not to honor the draft.  The height of Ali’s career was during a very tumultuos time period in the United States.  He was dealing with racism, the civil rights movement, the Vietnamn conflict, facing prison time for his religious beliefs, and oh yeah, raising a family.

My father and I used to argue about who actually was the greatest…Tyson or Ali.  He said that Tyson wouldn’t last 2 rounds with the quicker Clay. I was enchanted with Tyson’s raw power and anger. We will never know that answer.  

But, I think now I understand in my middle age my why Dad is an Ali loyalist.  Ali never quit and he did what he thought was right, just like my hero Davy Crockett. Although I know my dad didn’t agree with some of Ali’s stances, he did agree that you never take a fight sitting down.  I suppose that is one of the reasons that he is the best lawyer I’ve ever known.

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