Now Ali did indeed make a sign to President George W.Bush at the White House presentation. He made a loopy wacky twisting of his finger right in the President's face. Was he suborned to do this by the crass anti-Bush brigade? This I do not know.
Did some research on his given name: CASSIUS MARCELLUS CLAY. The boxer changed his name to Ali. His statement was said to be: "I aint havin'' no slave name". Cassius Marcellus Clay was an abolitionist pre civil war. He was beaten unconscious at one meeting of pro-slavery supporters. Some "slave name". In another meeting he was shot by pros-slavery rowdies and took three months to recover.
At one time Clay had over a hundred hangers on and kept fighting, because if he gave up, their meal ticket would end. I saw on television his four round defeat of "Big Cat Williams". Williams fought, with surgery previously from being shot by a policeman in the abdomen. Clay was at his best that night. I take no pleasure in his condition.
A fellow old timer here, followed his entire time from Rome ‘60 on. ..... The Big Cat, CW, 3 rounds, not four in that fight. Ali at his greatest with Williams. (Go to the youtube vids if you have not yet. My God what a warrior!) From the first Liston fight on, his younger body grew into his full developed 6’3 height and he moved like a welterweight. Anyone who followed boxing from his first pro fight thru Ali/Fraz 3, (when that was IT for Ali after), saw that Ali was done. Louis, or maybe Gene Tunney, were the only boxers that could even think of keeping up with Ali. Then again Ali outweighed each 15-30 lbs. and that counts a LOT in that weight group. Read Thomas Houser’s Book “Muhammad Ali’.....Fantastic read.