Beyond the Boxer: Ali and the Humanitarian Within

Muhammad Ali first visited the United Nations on April 4, 1978 to address the United Nations Special Committee. His address condemned apartheid with a message of peace and spirituality, and he became a part of the international campaign against apartheid. 

In June 1978, Ali embarked on a 12 day goodwill tour of the Soviet Union. His mission was to encourage Soviet-American relations. On this tour Ali became the first foreign athlete to meet with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, who recruited Ali as an Unofficial Ambassador of Peace with the United States.