Muhammad Ali’s Message: Fight for Your Vision and Change the System

Cassius Marcellus Clay, born in the segregated South of the United States, emerged as a boxing legend in the 1960s. Time and time again, he startled fans and the public at large with athletic prowess, charm and expression of personal beliefs with bravado. He joined the Nation of Islam in 1964, later converting to Sunni Islam: “Muhammad Ali had the courage to say no to Farrakhan and leave the anti-Semitism and homophobia of that part of Islam, and eventually to draw sustenance from the Sufi approach to Islam – the ultimate in a love-oriented religion,” explained Rabbi Michael Lerner, editor of Tikkun magazine, in an eulogy reprinted in Haaretz. Lerner praised Ali for refusing to fight in the Vietnam War in 1967. In retirement, Ali addressed issues of social and economic justice, along with other concerns of developing nations, and was designated a UN messenger of peace. Lerner, describing Ali as a non-conformist, urged the audience to likewise question the path of conformity. He concludes, “Be Muhammad Ali – fight for your highest vision, not for what others tell you is realistic.” – YaleGlobal