The Greatest Muhammad Ali

This athlete was the first American woman to win three Olympic gold medals in track and field in 1960. Overcame childhood illnesses to become one of the fastest women in the 1960's.

Who is Wilma Rudolph?

A welter-weight champion of the world, boxer, and arguably the greatest fighter pound for pound. Ali adopted his fighting style. Later in his life he suffered from Alzheimer's Disease.

Who is Sugar Ray Robinson?

This man was our nation's 35th President of the United States; he didn't believe in segregation. He was the president during the Cuban Missile Crisis ....president from 1961 - 1963. In June 1963, he sent to Congress the Civil Rights Bill.

Who is JFK?

This individual was a United States charismatic civil rights leader and Baptist minister who campaigned against the segregation of African Americans

Who is MLK Jr.?

This man renamed himself X to signify the loss of his African heritage; converted to Nation of Islam in jail in the 50s, became Black Muslims' most dynamic street orator and recruiter.

Who is Malcolm X?

This man was Muhammad Ali's trainer whose quick thinking bought him much needed time to recover from an injury during Ali's fight against Henry Cooper.

Who is Angelo Dundee?

This former Heavyweight Champion who was known for his deadly, intimidating stare. Lost the belt to Cassius Clay in 1964.

Who is Sonny Liston?

This man was the first African American boxer to win the World Heavyweight title against then Champion Tommy Burns (1908).

Who is Jack Johnson?

Our 36th President, signed the civil rights act of 1964 into law and the voting rights act of 1965. He had a war on poverty in his agenda. In an attempt to win, he set a few goals, including the great society, the economic opportunity act, and other programs that provided food stamps and welfare to needy families. He also created a department of housing and urban development.

Who is Lyndon B. Johnson and what did he do?

A police officer who met a young Cassius Clay after Clay's beloved bike was stolen. When Clay told the officer that he would "Whup" whoever stole it. This person introduced Clay to the "sweet science" of boxing.

Who is Joe Martin?

A British fighter who nearly knocked Cassius Clay out with a "tremendous left hook." Nearly beat Clay if not for the quick-thinking of Clay's trainer, Dundee

Who is Henry Cooper?

The leader of the Nation of Islam from 1945 to his death in 1975. He helped many people and was a strong advocate of civil rights. Gave Cassius Clay the new name Muhammad Ali after Clay converted to the Nation of Islam.

Who is Elijah Muhammad?

A powerful boxer. Lost to Ali when Ali, using his "Rope-a-dope" strategy, upset this man in the "Rumble in the Jungle" in 1974.

Who is George Foreman?

Muhammad Ali lost to this man in the "fight of the century" in 1971, but bounced back to beat him in the rematch in 1974, and again in the "Thrilla in Manila" in 1975.

Who is Joe Frazier?

Bombing of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii by Japan on December 7, 1941. The Japanese were hoping to cripple the American fleet.

Muhammad Ali was born a little over a month later on January 17, 1942.

What happened back on December 7, 1941? How does it relate to Muhammad Ali's life?

October 1954: Cassius Clay's red and white Schwinn bike is stolen and he meets Joe Martin, vowing to "Whup!" the person responsible for the theft. So begins his love of the "sweet science" of boxing.

When and what got Cassius Clay to take up the sweet science of boxing?

December 1955: one of the first demonstrations to protest against segregation where there were separate seating areas for blacks and whites, African Americans stopped riding the city bus, and after a year, the city agreed to desegregate the bus (p. 286)

What is the Montgomery Bus Boycott?

January 17, 1942
Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. born in Louisville, Kentucky in the segregated South.

When and where was Cassius Clay Jr. born?

When the Civil Rights Act was finally signed into law by president Lyndon B. Johnson.

What happened back on July 2, 1964?

A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion.

What is meant by "CO" Status?

Ali is charged with a federal crime.

What happened to Ali when he refused to step forward during the Army Induction Ceremony?

Ali is found guilty of refusal into the Army and is got fined 10,000, goes to prison for 5 years, his passport got taken away, and his heavyweight championship was taken away by the World Boxing Association

What is the verdict/outcome of Ali's two-day trial back in June 1967?

1960 Summer Olympic Games in Rome: won the gold medal in boxing

1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta: asked to light the Olympic Torch to kick off the Olympics during the opening ceremony.

What two Olympic Games did Ali attend? Explain.

February 1, 1960
Sit-ins at white-only restaurant occur with Ezell Blair Jr, Franklin McLain, David Richmond, and Joseph McNeil.

May 4, 1961
Freedom Riders were civil rights activist who rode interstate busses to segregated South to draw attention to the discrimination.

August 28, 1963

March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

What were nonviolent tactics/events during the civil rights movement in the 1950's and 1960's?

The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

What happened back on August 28, 1963?

Clay fought and beat Sonny Liston back on February 25, 1964 in Miami Beach, Florida.

Who did Cassius Clay fight to win the Heavyweight Championship title for the first time?

Clay announced he converted to the Nation of Islam and later took the name Muhammad Ali.

Shortly after the Championship fight with Liston, what did Cassius Clay announce to the world?

A boxer, originally from Philly, who Ali took on not once, but three times in three separate battles between 1971 and 1975, winning two of the three epic battles.

He was the world heavyweight-boxing champion from February 16, 1970, until January 22, 1973, when boxing great George Foreman beat him. Known as "Smokin" Joe.

Who is Joe Frazier?

An American former professional boxer, entrepreneur, minister and author. In boxing, he was nicknamed "Big George" and competed between 1967 and 1997. He is a two-time world heavyweight champion and an Olympic gold medalist.

Who is George Foreman?

December 2, 1969
Ali starred in the Broadway show "Buck White" and got back in the entertainment industry as a star and a celebrity.

Spoke on college campuses

Gave lectures within the Nation of Islam

In the late 1960's and early 1970's, while exiled from boxing, what did Ali do to pass the time?

He was an Irish-American boxer and fought Ali for Ali's comeback fight after being banned from boxing for 3 years.

October 26, 1970
Muhammed Ali makes a comeback in Atlanta with him. He suffered a serious injury to his eye, and Ali wins due to a TKO.

Who is Jerry Quarry?

Muhammad Ali was diagnosed with the chronic neurological disease known as Parkinson's Disease.

Symptoms: involuntary movements, muscle rigidity, problems with coordination, rhythmic muscle contractions, slow bodily movement, or slow shuffling gait.

What chronic disease is Ali diagnosed with back in 1984? What are some symptoms of the disease?

May 17, 1954:

Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, Supreme Court case in which the court ruled unanimously (9-0) that racial segregation in public schools violated the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution.

What major Supreme Court ruling said it was unconstitutional to have separate but equal schools in the South?

September 1957:

The Little Rock Nine were a group of nine black students who enrolled at formerly all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Their attendance at the school was a test of Brown v. Board of Education, a landmark 1954 Supreme Court ruling that declared segregation in public schools unconstitutional.

What were the Little Rock Nine?

November 22, 1963: JFK

February 21, 1965: Malcolm X

April 4, 1968: Dr. MLK Jr.

June 6, 1968: RFK

What famous political leaders did we lose during the turbulent decade of the 1960's

June 28, 1971

Ali's legal status was resolved. The Supreme Court of the United Stated unanimously reversed Ali's conviction on refusing induction.

What was the outcome of Ali's appeal regarding his guilty verdict?