Explosive Fists: Remembering a Champion

*****EXPLOSIVE FISTS*****
Digital composite by Felicia Lujan.
Includes: one historic photo of Jack
Johnson from the Library of Congress;
an image of fireworks; a printscreen
on the statistics of his New Mexico fight
on July 4, 1912; and the measurements
or “tape on the fighters.”
***NOTE: Click on the image twice to see it larger.

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First and foremost, I would like to say thank you to all of those
in the military who have sacrificed blood, sweat and tears for
our freedom. Thank you to the brave men and women
who are there to protect this great country.
On Independence Day (the Fourth of July), we take
time to remember the importance of being free by
celebrating history and tradition nationally
here in the United States.

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Johnson and Flynn in the ring (Las Vegas, New Mexico), July 4, 1912, Image No. LC-B2- 2498-1, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

I couldn’t think of a better historical symbol of freedom today than a black heavyweight boxer named Jack Johnson (1878-1946). I wrote about this fighter in August of 2011 in a post titled Focus: A Cornerstone of Fitness. My home state (New Mexico) became an official part of the United States in 1912. That was 100 years ago. The New Mexican struggle for statehood ended in January of that year, while Jack Johnson prepared for a physical and mental fight here. Johnson was the first American black heavyweight champion. On July 4, exactly one century ago Johnson faced a fight with the critics of his physical fitness as well as racism. At the time he was married to a white woman. The heavyweight lived in New Mexico for a bit while in training to fight Jim Flynn (1879–1935). Flynn was labeled a “white hope” by the media and was favored to take the fight. Though many criticized Johnson’s shape for that fight, I think he was in good shape. He won the fight! There are historical accounts of bleachers being added to his outdoor gym in Las Vegas, New Mexico, because Johnson charged onlookers to watch him train. We are lucky to be free. There are still some who are fighting for their own freedom. If that is the case, you should keep up the fight. Jack Johnson’s explosive fists, symbolic of the fight for freedom, and his tenacity secured him a TKO in that very fight on Independence Day in 1912. You can see the video below!!
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