FBI kept tabs on Muhammad Ali in 1966 during Nation of Islam probe
Source: Reuters
U.S. | Fri Dec 16, 2016 | 4:05pm EST
FBI kept tabs on Muhammad Ali in 1966 during Nation of Islam probe
By Alex Dobuzinskis
The FBI kept a close watch on the activities of Muhammad Ali in 1966, with a particular focus on his links to the Nation of Islam, a black movement that the agency viewed as subversive, according to archival documents posted on the FBI website.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation released the documents in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit by the conservative group Judicial Watch.
Ali, one of the world's most famous celebrities and a revered role model for African-Americans, died in June at age 74. His death triggered an outpouring of affection for the former heavyweight champion, known as much for his social activism and humanitarianism as for his legendary boxing career.
The FBI's disclosures reveal another example of the agency's surveillance activities during the 1960s and 1970s under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover. Among the public figures the FBI monitored in those turbulent years were civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr and singer-songwriter John Lennon.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-muhammadali-idUSKBN145122
= new reply since forum marked as read
