41. Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson Geoffrey Ward Jack Johnson became the first ever black heavyweight champion when he won the title from Tommy Burns in 1908. At a time when Jim Crow was in full force in the USA and the status of the heavyweight champion was second only to the President in terms of profile, Johnson’s victory provoked a furious response from white America. A search for the great white hope was formed before former champion James J Jeffries came out of retirement for the fight of the century in 2010. His subsequent defeat prompted one of the country’s largest race riots in which 20 people were killed and hundreds injured. Even before Johnson lost the title to Jess Willard in 1915, he had been prosecuted by the federal government on a trumped up charge. Geoffrey Ward’s work is meticulously researched. He places the reader at ringside for each of Johnson’s bouts while also framing his actions in an historical and social context. Most impressively, he captures Johnson’s rebellious personality. At a time when a black man had a defined place in American society, Johnson deliberately and openly defied almost every convention going. Once he was pulled over by a police officer for speeding and fined $50. Johnson handed over $100 telling the officer that was for his return trip. He also courted and married white women, which was the truly ‘unforgivable’ by the standards of society at the time. It would be another 22 years before another black boxer, Joe Louis who was tutored to be the antithesis of Johnson, was granted another shot at the heavyweight championship. Daniel Schofield • Buy Now