President Trump said Saturday he’s considering a posthumous pardon for boxing champion Jack Johnson, after some lobbying by actor Sylvester Stallone of “Rocky” fame.
“Sylvester Stallone called me with the story of heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson,” Mr. Trump tweeted. “His trials and tribulations were great, his life complex and controversial. Others have looked at this over the years, most thought it would be done, but yes, I am considering a Full Pardon!”
Johnson, the first black heavyweight champion of the world, was convicted by an all-white jury in 1913 of violating the Mann Act, which made it illegal to transport women across state lines for “immoral purposes.” Johnson was married three times to white women, at a time when interracial relationships were scandalous or even outlawed, and often provoked violent reactions.
He was a fugitive after his conviction but eventually turned himself in and served about one year in federal prison, gaining his release in 1921. He died in a car crash in 1946 in North Carolina at age 68.
Johnson’s great-niece, Linda Haywood, has been pushing for a pardon for the boxing legend. She has the support of Sen. John McCain, Arizona Republican.
“Jack Johnson was a boxing legend and pioneer whose career and reputation were ruined by a racially charged conviction more than a century ago,” Mr. McCain said in a statement in February. “Johnson’s imprisonment forced him into the shadows of bigotry and prejudice, and continues to stand as a stain on our national honor.”
Ms. Haywood sought a pardon for Johnson under President Barack Obama, but his Justice Department denied the request, saying clemency actions for the living should be the government’s priority.
Filmmaker Ken Burns introduced Johnson’s story to a new generation in 2005 in the documentary “Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson.”
Mr. Trump has pardoned three convicted felons to date: former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio, former Navy sailor Kristian Saucier, and I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, ex-adviser to former Vice President Dick Cheney.
Presidents rarely grant posthumous pardons, but it does happen.
President Clinton pardoned Henry O. Flipper, the first black officer to lead the Buffalo Soldiers cavalry regiment during the Civil War, who had been convicted of trumped-up embezzlement charges. President George W. Bush pardoned Charles Winters, who had been convicted of violating the Neutrality Act in 1949 during the Arab-Israeli war.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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