Ali, Muhammad, 1942-2016

Scope Note: 670 __ |a Wikipedia, Oct. 14, 2011 |b (Muhammad Ali; b. Jan. 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky; an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist) June 24, 2017 (Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942-June 3, 2016); American professional boxer and activist; born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky; won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome; converted to Islam and changed his name from Cassius Clay; in 1966, two years after winning the heavyweight title, Ali further antagonized the white establishment by refusing to be drafted into the U.S. military, citing his religious beliefs and opposition to American involvement in the Vietnam War. He was eventually arrested, found guilty of draft evasion charges, and stripped of his boxing titles. He successfully appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned his conviction in 1971; Ali’s actions as a conscientious objector to the war made him an icon for the larger counterculture generation; as a Muslim, Ali was initially affiliated with Elijah Muhammad’s Nation of Islam (NOI) and advocated their black separatist ideology. He later disavowed the NOI, adhering initially to Sunni Islam and later to Sufism, and supporting racial integration; in 1984, Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson’s syndrome, which his doctors attributed to boxing-related brain injuries. As the condition worsened, Ali made limited public appearances and was cared for by his family until his death on June 3, 2016, in Scottsdale, Arizona) 670 __ |a New York times WWW site, viewed June 6, 2016 |b (in obituary published June 4: Muhammad Ali; b. Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., Jan. 17, 1942, Louisville; d. Friday [June 3, 2016], in a Phoenix-area hospital, aged 74; lived near Phoenix; three-time world heavyweight boxing champion who helped define his turbulent times as the most charismatic and controversial sports figure of the 20th century; won the Olympic light-heavyweight title at the 1960 Olympics in Rome; the morning after his Miami Beach fight with Sonny Liston on Feb. 25, 1964, he affirmed his rumored membership in the Nation of Islam and became Cassius X; a few weeks later he became Muhammad Ali; later left the group and converted to orthodox Islam) 670 __ |a azcentral.com WWW site, viewed June 6, 2016 |b (in obituary dated June 4: Muhammad Ali; d. late Friday night [June 3, 2016], Scottsdale, aged 74) 670 __ |a The religion and political views of Muhammad Ali, via The hollowverse website, viewed June 24, 2017 |b (Muhammad Ali was born in Louisville, Kentucky and raised in a Baptist household. In a famous conversion in 1964, Ali renounced Christianity and announced that he was a member of the Nation of Islam; later in life, Ali mellowed, converted to a small sect of Islam called Sufi) |u http://hollowverse.com/muhammad-ali/ 670 __ |a Muhammad Ali’s religion: 5 fast facts you need to know, posted June 5, 2016 on Heavy website, viewed June 24, 2017 |b (Muhammad Ali sacrificed three years of his career and risked imprisonment for his faith. He refused to serve in the Vietnam War, referring to himself as a "conscientious objector," and was arrested. Ali considered his Christian upbringing empty and sought out a new spiritual home, which he found in the Nation of Islam; spent 15 years as a Black Muslim (as the Nation’s members were often called) before converting to Sunni Islam. In his later years, Ali embraced Universal Sufism also known as Sufi Order Ināyati; was raised as a Baptist; first came into contact with the Nation of Islam (NOI) in 1959 while in Chicago for a Golden Gloves tournament, and attended his first meeting in 1961; kept his affiliation with the NOI a secret for three years; left the Nation and embraced the more mainstream Sunni Islam in 1975 following the death of Elijah Muhammad; by 2005, Ali had become more spiritual than religious, his daughter Hana Yasmeen Ali told Beliefnet. He embraced Sufi Islam and followed the teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan) |u http://heavy.com/sports/2016/06/muhammad-ali-religion-muslim-nation-of-islam-sufism-vietnam-war-malcolm-x-donald-trump/

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