The Fight of the Century: On the Exploitation of Social Divides
Pursuits of political and financial gains take many forms and sometimes include exploitations of social divides. Such exploitations harness and intensify animosity between groups to advance political and financial interests. The prevalent use of this technique in the 21st century has heightened concerns about its corrosive effects on democratic institutions. This Essay offers a case study of the phenomenon: the exploitations of racial divides surrounding the rise of Jack Johnson, the first black heavyweight boxing champion.
At the height of the Jim Crow era, Johnson was the most hated, most feared, and most admired black man in America. He refused to accept the place given to blacks and displayed utter disregard of confrontation risks. His boxing bouts and fight films were promoted by conscious exploitation of racism, and their successful commercialization was exploited to advance censorship.
In his most iconic fight, Johnson defeated the “white man’s hope,” a retired champion who was pressured to fight Johnson to reassert the title for the white race. Johnson’s victory sparked violent race riots and a crusade to bar the exhibition of fight films, arguably to restore law and order in America.
