The Whitewashing of Authentic Black Manhood

Being that a large percentage of the rights to his name and image was purchased for more than $50 million not too long ago, I would postulate that there were some type of financial issues, and from what I know about him and how he felt about his girls and his granddaughter by Laila, who absolutely adored her grandfather (I heard that she was the one kid who was absolutely unmoved and non-fearful of him with his condition), I can see him agreeing with the deal in order to provide for those girls after he was gone.

I have heard several interviews by Laila and Hanna (who everyone in the family concedes was her father’s favorite), and they never personally mentioned that they are okay with it, nor that it was truly his decision. The statement was released by a spokesperson for the family.

My speculation, and it is just that, it that his death is being managed and controlled in a way that his life could not. The last thing we need is his death inspiring these contemporary athletes to grow a pair and actually take some type of action that might make a difference.”

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Allow me to be lucidly clear here. White, mainstream America could not stand Cassius Clay, and they absolutely hated Muhammad Ali. It was not simply due to the fact that he was what they considered arrogant. It was because they could not bend his will with their threats. He was not deterred by the idea of losing all he had to earn as a world champion boxer. No, it was not his arrogance, it was that his confidence was encapsulated in purpose, passion, dignity and strength. Muhammad Ali was the representation of the fact that despite 400 years of absolute hell, they still hadn’t completely broken the will of the black men. They had successfully conditioned many to believe conformity was the way, but the will and fortitude of the black man was still very much alive. Men like Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Medgar Evers, Marcus Garvey and more, were willing to speak the truth without repentance, and truth has the power to ignite a revolution.

When I see White mainstream media celebrating Muhammad Ali, I know that they are not celebrating my hero. They are not even celebrating the man that was physically silenced by Parkinson’s. What they are celebrating is the fact that they get to paint him in a manner that sheds a favorable light on their own sordid history.

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What bothers me is the fact that so many African Americans are completely ignorant to our History, and blind to whom this GIANT was, to the point that they are actually believing the false narrative that is being written. We must gain a greater understanding of our past if we are ever to write the narrative of a brighter future. ~ Dr. Rick Wallace, Ph.D.