Highlights from the Muhammad Ali memorial service

Muhammad Ali"s Procession | The New York Times

1. Lonnie Ali

Muhammad Ali"s widow spoke eloquently of her husband"s strength of character and the inspiration his life might be to others.

"Muhammad may have challenged his government, but he never ran from it, or from America. He loved this country and he understood the hard choices that are borne of freedom. I think he saw a nation"s soul measured by the soul of its people."

2. Rasheda Ali-Walsh

Ali-Walsh smiled, and made her family smile, with an endearing tribute to her father. Just as he shook up the world in life, she said, he"s still shaking it up in death.

"Daddy"s looking at us now, right? And saying, "I told you I was the greatest!" No one compares to you, Daddy."

3. Billy Crystal

Comedian and longtime friend Billy Crystal said the first time he met the Champ was in 1974, when he was just getting started as a stand-up comedian and was asked to perform at an event honoring Ali. After finishing his routine, Ali gave him a nickname he"d keep for the rest of his life: "Little brother."

4. President Bill Clinton

The final speaker at the memorial service, Clinton remembered Ali"s humor, intelligence, natural gifts and determination "to write his own life story." He also drew big applause recalling Ali"s lighting of the Olympic torch in Atlanta in 1996, "seeing his hands shake and his legs shake and knowing, by G*d, he was going to make those last few steps, no matter what it took -- the flame would be lit, the fight would be won, his spirit would be affirmed."

5. Rabbi Michael Lerner

Among the religious leaders who spoke was Lerner, a political activist and editor of a progressive Jewish magazine. His remarks were the most political of the afternoon.

"The way to honor Muhammad Ali is to be Muhammad Ali today. That means us, everyone here and everyone listening. It"s up to us to continue that ability to speak truth to power. We must speak out, refuse to follow the path of conformity to the rules of the game in life."

6. Attallah Shabazz

The eldest daughter of Malcolm X, Attallah Shabazz came close to tears recalling the man who was the last close connection she had to her father. The two men were trusted friends, she said. And though Malcolm X was 16 years older, he still called Ali his "little brother."

7. Rev. Kevin Cosby

The Rev. Kevin Cosby, pastor at St. Stephen Church in Louisville and president of Simmons College of Kentucky, spoke about Ali"s importance in the growth of black pride in the years after Jackie Robinson, Joe Louis, Jesse Lewis and Rosa Parks. Ali took the idea of "somebody-ness to unheard-of heights," he said. "Before James Brown said, "I"m black and I"m proud," Muhammad Ali said, "I"m black and I"m pretty.""

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/11/us/muhammad-ali-7-memorial-speaker-highlights/index.html

Continue Reading ..

Muhammad Ali hospitalized, could pose serious issues

Muhammad Ali - Amazing Speed
Muhammad Ali is hospitalized in the Phoenix area with what two people familiar with his condition say may be more serious problems than his previous hospital stays.

The 74-year-old boxing great is fighting respiratory issues that are complicated by the Parkinson"s that he was diagnosed with in the 1980s, the people told The Associated Press on Thursday.

The two spoke separately in describing Ali"s condition that they say is concerning to family members. They declined to be identified because they were not speaking on behalf of the family.

A spokesman for Ali said in a statement earlier Thursday that the former heavyweight champion is being treated at an unidentified hospital for a respiratory issue. Spokesman Bob Gunnell said Ali was in fair condition, and a brief hospital stay was expected.

Ali"s longtime Parkinson"s doctor declined comment when reached by the AP Thursday night.

"I can"t really say much more than what"s in the papers," said Dr. Abraham Lieberman of the Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix.

Ali has been hospitalized several times in recent years, most recently in early 2015 when he was treated for a severe urinary tract infection initially diagnosed as pneumonia.

Ali has looked increasingly frail in public appearances, including April 9 when he wore sunglasses and was hunched over at the annual Celebrity Fight Night dinner in Phoenix, which raises funds for treatment of Parkinson"s.

His last formal public appearance before that was in October when he appeared at the Sports Illustrated Tribute to Muhammad Ali at The Muhammad Ali Center in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, along with former opponents George Foreman and Larry Holmes.

Ali has suffered from Parkinson"s for three decades, most famously trembling badly while lighting the Olympic torch in 1996 in Atlanta. Despite the disease he kept up a busy appearance schedule until recently, though he has not spoken in public for years.

Doctors say the Parkinson"s likely was caused by the thousands of punches Ali took during a career in which he traveled the world for big fights.

An iconic figure who at one point was perhaps the most recognized person in the world, Ali has lived quietly in the Phoenix area with his fourth wife, Lonnie, whom he married in 1986.

News of his hospitalization brought well wishes from boxers and others on Twitter, including Sugar Ray Leonard, who modeled his career after Ali"s.

"Prayers & blessings to my idol, my friend, & without question, the Greatest of All Time MuhammadAli ! #GOAT," Leonard wrote.

(Copyright 2016 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Source: http://abc7.com/news/muhammad-ali-hospitalized-could-pose-serious-issues/1369794/

Continue Reading ..