Jack Johnson

Early Life Of Jack Johnson

Born in 1878, Jack Johnson was the son of former slaves who were very active in the Methodist church community. His controversial ideas surrounding the church and its policies eventually led to his dismissal from the religious community his parents devoted themselves to. The Johnson family was large, including nine children. Some of the children received formal education, which was rare for black families during the time.

Johnson’s boxing career began early in life, at the age of 15. Shortly thereafter, in 1897, he started his profitable career as a professional. He earned a considerable amount of money fighting in private clubs. At the time, despite its popularity, boxing was considered illegal in many states, one of which was Texas. Johnson found himself jailed following a high profile fight against a Jewish boxer, Joe Choynski. Choynski and Johnson were both arrested following the fight, Johnson for 23 days but Choynski was released shortly thereafter.

Boxing Career

Johnson’s fighting skills impressed Choynski, and he provided boxing training to Johnson while he was jailed. As Johnson’s boxing skills developed, he fought with a very distinctive and controversial style. Johnson spent most of his rounds avoiding his opponent, dodging their punches, bobbing and weaving out of their way. He waited for just the right moment before delivering his offensive attack.

Johnson was successful against both black and white opponents, but for many years was not allowed to compete for the heavyweight championship, which was reserved for whites only. Racial tension was so great in America during the early 1900s that Johnson was only allowed to fight white boxers in exhibition matches. He often used the exhibitions as public displays to embarrass his opponents, wearing them down until they could barely stand, but not delivering a finishing blow until after sufficient punishment had been inflicted. Probably the most notable exhibition, known as “The Fight of the Century”, took place in 1910. Former heavyweight champion James Jeffries came out of retirement for the purpose of demonstrating that white boxers were better than black ones once and for all. After six years of retirement, Jeffries had to lose an astonishing 100 pounds to get back into fighting shape. The bout lasted 15 rounds, and Jeffries was knocked down two times. His staff finally told Jeffries to quit so that he wouldn’t be knocked out by Johnson in front of a huge crowd. This boxing match ignited riots in 25 states.

Later Life

Following his victory in “The Fight of the Century”, Johnson married a white woman, and faced threats of lynching and other racial discrimination. He and his wife fled to France to avoid prosecution, since it was illegal at the time for blacks and whites to marry. Later in his life he continued to fight in boxing exhibitions, and opened his own business. He died in a car crash in 1946. Legendary film maker Ken Burns made a documentary chronicling the life of Jack Johnson in 2004.