Muhammad Ali: ‘A courageous conscientious objector’

 

Posted on February 1, 2013 |

On January 31, 2013 – veteran Israeli journalist and author, Gideon Levy, wrote at daily Ha’aretz: “When (Israel’s new rising politician) Yair Lapid says he admires Muhammad Ali, he should remember why Ali became a role model. The boxer was a courageous conscientious objector, exactly the kind that Lapid, would surely find appalling“. Frankly, I have not heard of a single “conscientious objector” among the 4 million Zionist Jews living inside Israel – or for that matter among Jewish leaders around the world.

Take for example two famous Jewish Islamophobe Israel-Firsters, Abraham Foxman (ADL) and Dr. Daniel Pipes. Both slammed president George Bush for honoring Muhammad Ali with a prestigious award in 2005. Pipes called the event ”the nadir of his presidency”. Abbe compared it an insult to the families of 9/11 victims. Daniel was reminded by professor Yehuda Pearl, father of WSJ Jewish reporter and Mossad agent, Daniel Pearl, that Muhammad Ali did issue an appeal to captors and Pakistan government for Danny’s release. Daniel Pearl, a dual (US-Israel) citizen, was murdered by a pro-Taliban group for spying for Israel. On May 27, 2010, Barack Hussein Obama signed the Daniel Pearl Act – and thus immoratalized a Mossad agent.

When it comes to charity and humanitarian work, Muhammad Ali, never differentiated between his fellow Muslims and Christians or Jews. On December 27, 1975, The Jewish Week, reported that Ali gave $100,000 donation to the Jewish Self-Help Community Services Hillside Aged Program of Washington Heights, New York.

In 1996, Ali, went to Cuba, a Catholic nation, and donated $50,000 toward the Foundation for Education and Disarmament’s fund for fighting Parkinson’s disease in Cuba. In 1998, Ali along with Hollywood Jewish actor Edward David Asner (Mary Tyler Moore comedy show), revisited Cuba to deliver $1.2 million worth medical supplies. Ali met Cuban president Fidel Castro, who said that Ali’s visit proved American, in general, hate their government’s sanctions against Cuba.

In 2002, Jim Dasney, who covered Pope John Paul II visit to Muslim-majority Azerbaijan, wrote that “seeing the Pope up so close, reminded of Muhammad Ali. Just like the great boxer, John Paul II commands great respect and love“.

Professor John C. Walter (University of Washington, Seattle) posted a great investigative article at ARNet on January 18, 2013 – in which he summerized the career of former world boxing champion, Muhammad Ali in these words: “Mohammad Ali was more that an outstanding athelte: he was a catalyst for social change, a model for possitive imitation, an inspiration to generations of people of all races worldwide“. Read the article here.
 

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