McCain Wants pardon for Jack Johnson
 

WASHINGTON – Sen. John McCain wants a presidential pardon for Jack Johnson, who became the nation's first black heavyweight boxing champion 100 years before Barack Obama became its first black president.

McCain feels Johnson was wronged by a 1913 conviction of violating the Mann Act by having a consensual relationship with a white woman — a conviction widely seen as racially motivated.

"I've been a very big fight fan, I was a mediocre boxer myself," McCain, R-Ariz., said in a telephone interview. "I had admired Jack Johnson's prowess in the ring. And the more I found out about him, the more I thought a grave injustice was done."

On Wednesday, McCain will join Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., filmmaker Ken Burns and Johnson's great niece, Linda Haywood, at a Capitol Hill news conference to unveil a resolution urging a presidential pardon for Johnson. Similar legislation offered in 2004 and last year failed to pass both chambers of Congress.

King, a recreational boxer, said a pardon would "remove a cloud that's been over the American sporting scene ever since (Johnson) was convicted on these trumped-up charges."

"I think the moment is now," King said.

Presidential pardons for the dead are rare.


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I'm sorry but... "Huh?"

ETA: And if pushed far enough, guess who ultimately has to sign off on it?

I thought it was Jack Johnson the singer.

:D:D:D

Maybe he is trying to make up for the MLK Holiday gaffe...LOL

I remember studing Jack Johnson in my History of Sports in America class in college. His story is really facinating. His fight against James Jeffries "the great white hope" was called the fight of the century.

I hope they do issue the pardon. It won't help him now, but as a symbolic act, it would be nice.

First, hunh?

Second, I want him to elaborate on this; what exactly does this mean. What is the nature of this "cloud?" Why this particular offense?

I would say this means that when Jack Johnson was in his prime (the 1900s-1920s), he was seen as being "upity". He dated white women and he ruled a sport that up until that time had been dominated by white men.

Think of Jackie Robinson integrating MLB- everyone comments on how well he handled the jeers and threats. Now, Jack Johnson- he integrated a formerly white sport. Only Johnson enjoyed wearing flashy clothes and going out on the town with white women.

So, racists at the time hated Jack Johnson and tried to pin trumped up charges on him. The charge was taking a woman across state lines. Only problem was, the first woman was his wife. So they found a second woman to testify against him on charges that were motivated by his race.

As a side note, Jack Johnson was the first and last African-American to be the heavyweight champ until the 1930s. Not because there weren't other qualified fighters, but because after Johnson, the sport went back to being segregated.

Yes, I am aware of this, but I want to see the McCain folks articulate how that "witch-hunt" has impacted American sports to this day (which, I would say, it has).

Ditto thta, not to mention there would need to be so many other 'apologies' and 'pardons' sent out to so many folks that integrated all sports that were formerly white.


To be honest this is almost (ALMOST) as bad as issuing apologies for slavery.

But again still, the irony is at the end of the day, if McCain is successful, Obama will be the one signing off on it.

Did you watch the Jack Johnson movie with James Earl Jones? Is that proof of anything?

Do you think you and McCain know more about the case than the jury that convicted him?

It's probably more likely than not that, given the way the case was constructed and the fallout years later, McCain actually does know more about the case than the jurors.

Jurors only know what's presented to them. Usually there's more to the story.

Nope, never saw the movie.

And no, I don't necessarily think I know more about the case than the jury. However I do think I see the case through different eyes than the jury. I guess I see it as a similar thing to the apology that was sought for the Captain of the USS Indianapolis. The apology didn't mean anything for the person themselves (since they has passed on) however it was meaningful to the family. And if Jack Johnson's family would like one, then I see the point. It is just my opinion, you don't have to agree with it.

So call me crazy, but when I read the title of the thread I was wondering what on earth this guy did:

http://www.boston.com/ae/music/blog/jackjohnson2.jpg

isn't there a federal inquiry being launched into that one sheriff they got out there and the entire congressional delegation with the exception of Trent Franks (and maybe others) is being rather strangely quiet about it. This wouldn't be a cover for that at all would it? I mean, the U.S. Senate is above "wag the dog" style tactics, right?

/jaded sarcasm

Would those of you objecting or questioning this be questioning this if McCain weren't involved? Is it just that you doubt his motivation?

I would question it less if McCain wasn't involved. And to be quite truthful I don't understand his motivation behind it but I am curious to hear it.