Who were the last top boxers to draw the color line?

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by mrkoolkevin, Jul 9, 2019.


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  1. mrkoolkevin

    mrkoolkevin Never wrestle with pigs or argue with fools Full Member

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    Some of the guys who drew the color line in the 20s and 30s were:
    Young Stribling,
    Gene Tunney,
    Jack Dempsey,
    Tommy Loughran

    Anyone else?
     
    Last edited: Jul 10, 2019
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 9, 2019
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 9, 2019
    #1
  2. Unforgiven

    Unforgiven VIP Member banned Full Member

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    Bernard Hopkins drew a line at "losing to a white boy" but seems to have a change of heart on that pretty quick and duly lost to a white boy ( a debatable decision).
    His career ended with two magnificent loses to white boys so he certainly broke his own color line before retirement. To his credit.
     
    Unforgiven, Jul 9, 2019
    Unforgiven, Jul 9, 2019
    #2
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  3. Tonto62

    Tonto62 Boxing Addict banned Full Member

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    Braddock? When did he draw the color line?
    He fought;
    Billy Jones 1930
    Al Gainer1931
    John Henry Lewis1932
    Dynamite Jackson 1932
    John Henry Lewis1934
    Joe Louis 1937
     
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
    #3
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  4. dinovelvet

    dinovelvet Antifanboi Full Member

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    Jack Johnson
     
    dinovelvet, Jul 10, 2019
    dinovelvet, Jul 10, 2019
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  5. Tonto62

    Tonto62 Boxing Addict banned Full Member

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    Defended his title against Battling Jim Johnson in1913 fought 45 verified bouts against black opponents and was the Colored Championfrom1903 and never lost it.
     
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
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  6. Tonto62

    Tonto62 Boxing Addict banned Full Member

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    Stribling was from the deep south ,I should imagine mixed bouts were illegal there then.I can't find a mixed bout on his record so maybe he went along with the with the status quo?
     
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
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  7. dinovelvet

    dinovelvet Antifanboi Full Member

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    A line can have different colors :trolldeltesoro:
     
    dinovelvet, Jul 10, 2019
    dinovelvet, Jul 10, 2019
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  8. Tonto62

    Tonto62 Boxing Addict banned Full Member

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    No doubt which color are you referring to exactly?
    The Thin Red Line? ie How many boxers fought Native Americans?
     
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
    Tonto62, Jul 10, 2019
    #8
  9. Tramell

    Tramell Hypocrites Love to Pray & Be Seen. Mathew 6:5 Full Member

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    I exclude Dempsey. Ample evidence suggests it was Tex Rickard the promoter. Once he saw the bloodshed and out right murder that occurred after Johnson won the title (randomly beating blacks that night,-some died)...well Tex maintained it was he who didn't want Dempsey fighting Jack Johnson or anyone of color.

    There is some under the radar claims that supposedly Johnson fought Dempsey in Canada.


    @Tonto62 (everyone who fought Joe Hipp? LOL!):)
     
    Tramell, Jul 10, 2019
    Tramell, Jul 10, 2019
    #9
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  10. mrkoolkevin

    mrkoolkevin Never wrestle with pigs or argue with fools Full Member

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    Yeah, I'm going to edit my original post to remove Braddock. One writer described him as having drawn the color line before the Louis-Carnera fight, but it seems like he was just saying that he didn't think the powers that be would allow that fight to happen. He was consistent in saying that he wouldn't draw the color line himself though.
     
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
    #10
  11. mrkoolkevin

    mrkoolkevin Never wrestle with pigs or argue with fools Full Member

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    Whoever was chiefly responsible for his failure to fight any black fighters, the fact still stands that Dempsey drew the color line--probably more famously than any other fighter in the history of the ring. You can choose to *excuse* Dempsey but I don't see how we can *exclude* him.

    The crazy thing is that white sportswriters and boxing people seemed to blame the racial violence after Johnson's win on "aggressive" black fans celebrating too hard, rather than on the racist, vicious white men who attacked and murdered them.
     
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
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  12. BitPlayerVesti

    BitPlayerVesti Boxing Drunkie Full Member

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    Seems especially odd since the color line is only a thing for a champion, and he only defended against Louis.

    How can you draw the color line if you're not a champion?
     
    BitPlayerVesti, Jul 10, 2019
    BitPlayerVesti, Jul 10, 2019
    #12
  13. mrkoolkevin

    mrkoolkevin Never wrestle with pigs or argue with fools Full Member

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    Most of his big fights took place outside the south. I saw one article claiming that Stribling drew the color line on Larry Gains when he visited England in 1933.
     
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
    #13
  14. mrkoolkevin

    mrkoolkevin Never wrestle with pigs or argue with fools Full Member

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    In the terminology of the time, boxers who refused to fight black fighters on account of their race were described as "drawing the color line," whether they were champions or not. Loughran and Stribling are two examples.
     
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
    mrkoolkevin, Jul 10, 2019
    #14
  15. janitor

    janitor VIP Member Full Member

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    In fairness a fighter who does not hold a title, is within their rights to fight who they want, for any reason or none at all.
     
    janitor, Jul 10, 2019
    janitor, Jul 10, 2019
    #15
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