Boxing is a sport, but Joe Louis single-handedly changed it. He reformed boxing to the heart of America, while using his glove to save her, but the country Louis worked so hard to support and save had betrayed him.
Joe Louis, the son of share croppers, became the world’s most beloved hero. An African boxer, Louis faced many trials in his coming up. Left in the shadow of former African American boxer, Jack Johnson (Galveston Giant), Louis faced increased prejudgments. Johnson offended the Caucasian race by standing over his opponents after a win and also by dating and marrying white women; Jack Johnson became a nuisance on the boxing society. Hesitantly believing that Louis would be a repeat, boxing commissioners instilled in him do’s and don’ts of boxing. Louis was never glut over his white opponents, he was also instructed not to date or marry women of the Caucasian race. During the 1930’s the African Americans society saw Louis as a hero. He was their spoken truth, he proved that African Americans could have a role in the world. The talented boxer, showed the rest of his race that there was hope in equality. Not only did Louis become a boxing icon, but he also gave back to his people. Louis would often spend various amounts of money on his family, putting his siblings threw school and purchasing houses for his mother. Louis would also give much of his money to everyday people, the one’s he felt needed it more than him. He became a greater hope to his race.
Louis did not only have the support of the African American society, but later on in his earlier career grasped the attention of white gamblers. Remembering that these are the times of obsessed gambling, white risk takers no longer were bothered by the color of his skin, but...
... middle of paper ...
...he match was 600,000 dollars (most money Louis earned in one match-source2). Owing his ex-wife 66,000 dollars, his managers 140,000 dollars, and the State of New York 30,000 dollars, left him only 364,000 to his name and still very deeply in dept Louis continued to box.
The long layoff from boxing, and stress from back-taxes had in fact drained him of his skills. His matches no longer had the same excitement, and knock-outs, but instead became drown out, and boring. Louis’s lack of skills lost him the support and fans base of many. Fewer people showed up to his fights and it became harder to book fights featuring him, and the deeper he got in dept. The country Louis had set his dreams aside to save and rescue had left him. With the same love and support he had experienced in 1939 had vanished. Louis was no longer America’s hero, and the talking fist had silenced.
To determine what factors Brown had to overcome to become a success, we must look at what was against him. He was a black man in a white dominant society. The only factor that could have made Brown being black any worse was if he grew up in the South. He shows us this through his parents they moved from the South to Harlem to escape its prejudices. Like many black families Brown’s parents wanted to be the first Northern urban generation of Negro’s. He showed the kind of Southern black mentality his parents had with the jobs they took and the way they reacted to his quitting of what they called good paying jobs....
The Great Depression of the 1930’s caused widespread poverty, but the popular culture of the time did not reflect this. People wanted to escape from this harsh time so movies, dancing and sports became very popular. Radios broadcasted boxing matches and boxers became stars. The heavyweight champion James J. Braddock aka “Cinderella Man,” gained popularity. James Braddock gained fame by winning many fights and proving everyone wrong when they said he was too old and couldn’t win.
Have you ever been protested and demonstrated against? Jackie Robinson felt the outcry of America during his baseball career. Fighting not only for his future, but also for the overall well-being of his sport, Robinson received death threats for his efforts. On a daily basis, this disciplined African man fought the pressures of hatred toward his entire race. As a segregated country, America saw major league baseball as a white man’s sport. Robinson was the outlier in an otherwise American “tradition.” Society observed Robinson’s play on the field with extremely bias eyes. No matter the achievement; no matter the obstacle; many still discredited his abilities due to the color of his skin. Over time skeptics gave in to their malice. Robinson broke the color barrier in American sports! Through perseverance and a stable mind, Jackie Robinson shattered the segregation of sports and started a revolution! Although,sport equality is not completely perfect in this world, Jackie Robinson’s contributions towards American sports, desegregation, and society will never be forgotten throughout the world.
Born the son of a sharecropper, John Lewis saw segregation first hand while attending segregated public schools. While growing up in Pike County, Alabama, he was inspired by Civil Rights activists like Martin Luther King Jr. ultimately influencing him to join the Civil Rights Movement. As a young man he began to volunteer for Freedom Rides which was a movement by Civil Rights activists who protested segregation at interstate bus terminals. Lewis was one of the few individuals to launch the Freedom rides. Here, Lewis was beaten severely by angry mobs for sitting in seats saved for white riders. In this quote from John Lewis, he shares his fears in sacrificing his life for his work; “I thought I was going to die a few times.
The story of how young Cassius Marcellus Clay wound up in boxing has been told time and time again. It reads as if it a movie script. However, this story is better than fiction. Clay was born on January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Ky. Growing up, Clay understood his place in the framework of the country he was a black child of the middle class. But Toni Morrison, who worked on Ali's autobiography as a young editor, noted that was not the best situation in which to be raised. Because not only was he middle class, "but black middle class, black southern middle class, which is not white middle class at all." (1)
Has anyone ever wondered why, what made the tough Joe Louis join the sport of boxing? Before Louis held the heavyweight title for almost 12 years, Louis only had little schooling because his mother noticed he wasn’t strong at it, so she wanted him to have a musical career and had him play the violin. One day during his violin lesson, a friend of his recommended him to try out the sport of boxing because he was so muscular and tall. Ever since that day Louis hid his boxing gloves in his violin case; spending his afternoons in the gym rather than practicing the violin and became the great man he is today. Joe Louis is a rebel because he has improved the culture for all Americans and shaped their independence and character.
It started at a young age when he lacked supervision and lead him to crime. From crime he found boxing, and in that he found profession. Within profession, he found power. However, with power, he left mistakes which cost him time in prison and the burning down of his racket world empire. Perhaps he knew that his fall from success could be easily found in the cards, it may be that he was just a businessman. For this boxer, gangster, mobster, murderer, crime lord, businessman, legend, whichever adjective is used once proudly proclaimed, “All good things must one day be burnt to the ground for the insurance money.” (Mickey Cohen Quotes) And burning to the ground did his authority, his Rome, and his world
Muhammad Ali had a significant impact on American Society for not only his fighting styles, but also his values he exemplified outside of the ring. Float like a butterfly sting like a bee. Ali is light on his feet but explosive with his hit. Ali had a total of 61 fights and of those 61 fights 56 were wins 37 were by Knock Out and he only had 5 losses. He returned to the ring in 1970, He knocked out Jerry Quarry in October. The next year, Ali fought Joe Frazier in what called the "Fight of the Century." Frazier and Ali fought for 15 rounds then Frazier finally knocked Ali to the ground, before beating Ali by decision made by the judges. Ali finally later beat Frazier in a 1974 rematch.
Muhammad Ali was a man made to box. He had a great career before him since he made his first professional fight under President Eisenhower presidency. His Professional Career was really impressive. His had a great balance and was able to move his hands and feet in great speed and coordination. Ali was said to dance in the ring while destroying his opponents. Ali started fighting at a very short age, and his first teacher was Joe Martin (Hauser 18). Through hard work and discipline, he became a professional fighter and eventually the Heavyweight champion of the world. Although he lost the title twice, he regained it three times, putting him in the history books. His boxing career was put to an end when he started suffering from Parkinson's disease. This was the end of his boxing, but his greatness will never die.
Boxing in the early and mid-twentieth century had an appeal that captured the eyes and ears of millions of Americans. Championship fights and popular fighters were on national television and in newspaper headlines. At the time, boxing was relevant in the American sports world. However, over the past 30 years, boxing has regressed and lost its popularity. Spectacles like the graceful Muhammad Ali and the hard-hitting Mike Tyson are gone and have been replaced by lackluster fighters and greedy fight promoters who only care about their profit cut. On top of that, an increasing pile of evidence is starting to show more clearly the dangers of repeated head trauma and how corrupt the business of boxing has become. Lastly, boxing is pressured by the rapidly growing sport, mixed martial arts (MMA), because of its safer nature and a strong corporate leader. These causes combined will finally cause boxing to die as a sport in America unless serious steps are taken to reform the sport.
Neil Leifer born New Yorker, started his career around 1958 known for taking chances, he found photography interesting from a young age. He uses to push handicapped patrons into sports games which granted him not just free access, but also great spots from where he could position himself to take the perfect photo shot. Leifer became one of the top sports photographers in the world he believed it was about luck, luck is to be at the right place at the right time, this separates the top and ordinary sports photographers from each other. Boxing was another interesting sport that he use to watch and why not document it? To apprehend sports photography you have to be at the right place and time. During the heavyweight title
Cassius Clay, Jr., famously known as Muhammad Ali, began boxing at an early age, initiated his successful career in the boxing ring, and shared his wealth and convictions to the less fortunate. Since Muhammad Ali as a youth experienced difficulties, he found the sport of organized boxing to be a way to counteract his emotions. Although his career met with some disappointments, he was awarded numerous recognitions for his outstanding abilities. From his accomplishments in the boxing arena, Ali extended his accomplishments by assisting numerous charities. Muhammad Ali’s recognition in the world of boxing developed from childhood challenges and grew into his desire to aid humanity.
Born Cassius Clay in 1942, Muhammad Ali had already won the title of World Heavy Weight Champion in 1964 at the age of 22. This honour followed a gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics. He only had five loses in his entire professional career as a boxer, victorious 56 times. During the golden age of boxing, he defeated every competitor, making him, earning him the title of “Fighter of the Year” more times than anyone. But his raw talent was not the only thing that defined him. He had a ritual of “talking tr...
When inducted to fight in a war they don’t believe in, Ali and Strickland both reveal their tenacious natures. As a well-known boxer, Ali was a public figure who
The first African American to play Major League baseball once said, “a life is not important, except in the impact it has on other lives”; this was, of course, Jackie Robinson. Similar to Muhammad Ali, he faced problems head on a...