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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2015 - 2016
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | June 4, 2016 03:23 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Vanessa Lowery Brown |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Resolution: Honoring the Life, Legacy and Contributions of Hall of Fame Boxer, Civil Rights Activist, Social Justice Icon, and Global Humanitarian the Late Muhammad Ali |
| In the very near future, I will be introducing a resolution honoring the life, legacy and contributions of hall of fame boxer, civil rights activist, social justice icon, and global humanitarian the late Muhammad Ali, who passed away at the age of 74 on Friday, June 3, 2016. Widely acclaimed for both his physical prowess and braggadocio in the boxing ring, the immensely personable and outspoken Muhammad Ali had an even greater impact outside of the realm of sports. During a period in our nation’s history when it was greatly unpopular for non-politicos to publicly voice their opinions on political matters, Muhammad Ali was not only willing to publicly share his views, but was also willing to forego a highly successful and lucrative boxing career in order to reconcile his words with his principles. While mega-pugilistic events like “The Rumble in Jungle” and the “Thrilla in Manila” conjure up many of the memories that we possess about the late great Muhammad Ali, it was his post-boxing career and life, particularly his extraordinary efforts around the subjects of disability rights, global diplomacy and Parkinson’s disease (a disease that he himself was stricken with in 1984) that spoke more keenly to the heart, compassion and altruism of the man who both famously and unabashedly proclaimed himself to be “the greatest of all-time.” The aforementioned humanitarian efforts earned Ali the distinguished privilege of lighting the Olympic cauldron during the 1996 Summer Olympic Games, an appointment by the United Nations as its Messenger of Peace in 1998, as well as the honor of receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from then-President George W. Bush in 2005. Therefore, I wish to take this opportunity to implore my colleagues to please join me in honoring the life, legacy and contributions of a man who not only “shook up” the boxing world, but also positively “shook up” the consciousness of the global community. For more information about this resolution, please contact Mr. Brandon Flood at 717-772-6955 or bflood@pahouse.net. |
Introduced as HR945