Featured Exhibit

“I wish people would love everybody else the way they love me. It would be a better world.”

Much of Muhammad Ali’s life was spent in service to others through charitable work, humanitarian missions, and everyday interactions that made a world of difference to those around him. He lived with the intention of making people feel as though they could achieve anything and that he believed in their greatness. People who had the opportunity to meet him often share the same sentiment: Ali never made them feel like a stranger, but more like they were the most important person in the world to him in that moment. He was a champion in boxing, yes, but he was also a champion of friendship, compassion, and generosity. 

While his humanitarian efforts in his later years were well-documented in the media, the reality was that Ali had always shown compassion to those in need. Muhammad Ali: A Champion of Compassion shines a light on a few of the many instances in the boxer’s life where he showed the world what it truly meant to love those who need it and that we should all endeavor to be compassionate to one another.

Photograph of Muhammad Ali holding young Michael Abel, courtesy of the Courier-Journal.