Louisville airport renamed in honor of Muhammad Ali
22nd January 2019 · 0 Comments
By Frederick H. Lowe
Contributing Writer
(BlackmansStreet.Today) – Louisville, Kentucky’s International Airport has been renamed the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in honor of Muhammad Ali, a Louisville native, three-time heavyweight boxing champ and a world-renown figure who caused people to stop in their tracks, reach out to touch him, or just stand happily in his glow.
The list of his fans included young Black men who wanted to emulate his boxing style, older Black men who took pride in his unabashed confidence, boasting “I am the Greatest,” and anti-Vietnam War activists who respected his courageous refusal to be inducted into military and fight in a war he abhorred and deemed racist.
Ali could even call Leonid Brezhnev, president of the Soviet Union, a fan. A smiling Brezhnev met with Ali for 35 minutes in 1978 at the Kremlin in Moscow.
I never saw my dad, Mitchell Lowe, smile so much as when Brezhnev met Ali. It was as though he and other Black men had met one of the most-powerful men in the world.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer on last Thursday announced Louisville Regional Airport Authority voted on Wednesday to rename the airport in honor of Muhammad Ali who born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. in Louisville on January 17, 1942. Today would have been his 76th birthday.
A formal renaming is scheduled for the week of June 3 at the “I am Ali” festival, which will be held at the Muhammad Ali Center, Jean Porter, communications director for Mayor Fischer, told BlackmansStreet.Today. That’s when signs should be installed throughout the airport and on roads leading to the airport.
More than 3.2 million passengers and 4.7 million pounds of cargo passed through the airport in 2014. The airport has three runways and sits on 1,500 acres. The airport is home to Worldport, the worldwide hub of United Parcel Service or UPS.
The Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123 Airlift Wing operates C-130 transport aircraft from the co-located Louisville Air National Guard Base.
“Muhammad Ali belonged to the world, but he only had one hometown, and fortunately, that is our great city of Louisville. Muhammad became one of the most well-known people to ever walk the Earth and has left a legacy of humanitarianism that has inspired billions of people,” Mayor Fischer said. “It is important we, as a city, further champion The Champ’s legacy and the airport renaming is a wonderful next step.”
The Airport Authority Board signed an agreement with Muhammad Ali Enterprises LLC for use of his name.
Lonnie Ali, his widow, said, “I am proud the Louisville Regional Airport Authority and the City of Louisville are supportive of changing the name of the Louisville International Airport to reflect Muhammad’s impact on the city and his love for his hometown.”
By renaming the airport, Louisville expects to boost the city’s tourism.
“Adding Muhammad Ali’s name to the Louisville International Airport reminds travelers from around the world that our city is a place to have a touchpoint with one of the most-recognized icons of all time,” said Karen Williams, president and CEO of the Louisville Convention and Visitors Bureau.
When Muhammad Ali died June 3, 2016, at the age of 74, city officials learned how much he meant to the world. “Visitors flocked to Louisville from nearly every region of the globe to pay their respects to their champion,” said Donald Lassere, president and CEO of the Muhammad Ali Center.
This article originally published in the January 21, 2019 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
