Muhammad ALI and Joe Louis, in no certain order, should be #1 and #1A. It doesn't matter who you list first. Both stand head and shoulders above all else in their collective contributions to society.
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Both ALI and Louis are largely responsible for many positive contributions to society. The two most noteworthy contributions are,
1. Raising or helping to raise the Spiritual self-worth in Black society.
2. Bridging the gaps between Blacks and those of other races, particularly Whites.
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3. Alexis Arguello fought for the rights of the common man in his native Nicaragua. Sadly, his rise in politics only placed him, and his family, at the center of but bullseye of the corrupt politics in his country.
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4. Vitali Klitschko is fighting for a worthy cause in his country.
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5. You could argue that Jack Johnson had a great impact for social change. He did. However, most of the change was negative, especially for black boxers. Most of Johnson's affect was realized years later. Still, impact is impact.
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There are a host of others like De la Hoya and Leonard, among others. However, most of their "impact" never ventured outside of boxing and were mostly self-serving.
Jack Johnson, Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Alexis Arguello, Manny Pacquiao
That's hard to say because boxers have different impact in different countries. Back when boxing was bareknuckle and the best came from Commonwealth nations you had boxing matches to settle political disputes! You can't get more influential than that!
Let me talk about the most influential boxers in the USA;
1. Joe Louis; opened the door for blacks in boxing, golf and the military. Regarded as the first beloved black athlete in the USA.
2. Jack Johnson; The first black world champion, closed the door for black boxers due to his flamboyant ways and the fact that he had relations with white women. His cockyness caused post fight riots which caused deaths.
3. John L. Sullivan; The first sports superstar in the USA. Sullivan was 1 of the first to use handwraps in a time when boxers fought bare knuckle, he made boxing mainstream in the states.
4. Muhammad Ali; civil rights activist.
5. Oscar de la Hoya; a boxing icon in his days who became the first boxer to successfully promote himself & become a major promoter, many have tried to follow suit afterwards including Floyd Mayweather, Miguel Cotto, Mike Tyson among others.
Great question mate.
Are we both talking positive and negative impacts?i ask because Jack Johnson's impact could be viewed as both positive and negative at the time of his reign.black people loved him but white's and the media hated him.for this list i will rate Jack Johnson as the Hero he is and on the impact he has had over time.he took it on the chin for black people by not giving a f!ck.still i think Louis's dignified silence was just as heavy a burden to bare and just as brave
Social Change is a vast term.take Jack Dempsey.although he was never involved in anything like the Civil rights movement he did draw crowds of over 100,000 people to his fights,that in itself is a phenomenal social change.i will take it is you mean changes that saw social reform even if some individual's impacts took longer to take effect than others
1.) Joe Louis
2.) Muhammed Ali
3.) Jack Johnson
4.) Joe Gans (first black champion)
5.) Barry McGuigan
special mention to Tommy Burns for giving Jackson his shot
Muhammed Ali: In refusing the draft he highlighted the stupidity and evil of the Vietnam War. Legend.
Alexis Arguello: Elected President of Nicaragua. I'm not too sure of this but I think he is the only ex boxer to be elected to the highest office a country has to offer.
Manny Pacquiao: The fighting in the Philippines stopped whenever the Pac Man stepped in the ring. Also elected to Congress and has done a lot for poverty stricken Filipinos giving money away etc. (much to his own detriment!)
Jack Johnson: One of the first mainstream black athletes in a very racist era. Pioneer of interracial relationships! lol
Vitali Klitscho: Currently a Ukrainian opposition politician, fighting for more transparency in Ukrainian politics and to bring the Ukraine into the European Union.
Ali, Louis, Johnson,Pacquaio, Vitali
This ought to be good...
