Appreciating Ali

Appreciating Ali: FILE - In this Feb. 18, 1964, file photo, The Beatles, from left, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison, take a fake blow from Cassius Clay, who later changed his name to Muhammad Ali, while visiting the heavyweight contender at his training camp in Miami Beach, Fla. Ali turns 70 on Jan. 17, 2012. (AP Photo/File)

Muhammad Ali, the fifth Beatle. Image from Wikimedia, labeled for reuse.

Appreciating Ali wasn’t always easy for me. Media portrayal of the man didn’t make it easier.

As a young, impressionable, eldest-son-type, I was all ears when my father yelled “why don’t you turn your hat around like ‘The Mick’?” at the television as though Ken Griffey, Jr., could hear him. Here in 2016, following trashy tell-all books and perjury in front of congress all recognize Junior as being ‘one of the good ones’ in comparison to his ‘roid-raging contemporaries.

Which is as good a segue as any into race’s role in my late-come appreciation for Muhammad Ali.

I can say without a doubt that racism played a role in my snarling ‘what else is on?’ anytime a channel surf churned up a clip of The Louisville Lip.

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