42 pages • 1 hour read
Walter Dean MyersA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
As Clay rose up the heavyweight ranks, he drew criticism for his association with the Nation of Islam, which issued fierce criticisms of white America. The notoriety made a fight with Liston all the more appealing, and so a deal was made for Clay to fight for the title in February 1964 in Miami Beach. Clay used his characteristically clownish antics to defuse Liston’s attempts at intimidation, and where most saw Liston as experienced, Clay insisted that he was old. Clay was proven right in victory, although the outcome was so surprising that many suspected foul play. Soon after the fight, Clay declared that he was a member of the Nation of Islam and would henceforth be known as Muhammad Ali. Many sportswriters refused to accept the new name, insisting that “he had been duped into becoming a Muslim by the Nation of Islam and that the organization would use Ali as a symbol of racial hatred” (49). Boxing (like all sports) intersected with questions of race, with a Black champion threatening white supremacy. Ali’s affiliation with the Nation made his win even more offensive, and so reporters reinterpreted the menacing Liston as “the good guy” who would punish Ali for his religious and political dissent (50).
By Walter Dean Myers
Autobiography of My Dead Brother
Walter Dean Myers
Bad Boy: A Memoir
Walter Dean Myers
Dope Sick
Walter Dean Myers
Fallen Angels
Walter Dean Myers
Hoops
Walter Dean Myers
Lockdown
Walter Dean Myers
Monster
Walter Dean Myers
Scorpions
Walter Dean Myers
Shooter
Walter Dean Myers
Slam!
Walter Dean Myers
Somewhere in the Darkness
Walter Dean Myers
Street Love
Walter Dean Myers
Sunrise Over Fallujah
Walter Dean Myers
The Glory Field
Walter Dean Myers
The Young Landlords
Walter Dean Myers