The Fight of His Life

The boxing champion whose fight against the Nazis in and out of the ring made him a global icon During the 1930s and 1940s, no African American athlete commanded the spotlight more than heavyweight boxer Joe Louis. His 1938 knockout victory over German Max Schmeling struck an early blow against Nazi Germany. But it was Louis’s service in the looming war that transformed him from a patriotic role model into history’s first prominent Black athlete turned activist. In The Fight of His Life , award-