Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100[“MuhammadAliRemembersMaine,” February/March2002] What was the strangest thing about your fight in Maine? Ali: “I don’t remember anything strange. I do remember going back to my room after and having a bowl of the best ice cream!” What one image comes back to you from that night? Ali: “Sonny going down in the first minute of the fight.” Did you get to try any Maine lobster? Ali: “Because of my religious beliefs I did not eat lobster.” We spoke to the man himself about the legendary fight in Lewiston L ewiston was a small mill town of a little over 40,000 residents when an event simultaneously de- scribed as “the fourth-greatest sports moment of the twentieth century” [Sports Illustrated] and “the biggest mess in sporting history” [NPR] landed in its midst.In May of 1965,two of the great- est fighters of the time swept into town,carrying in their wake a flood of spectators,glitterati,and over 600 reporters.Through a stroke of luck,local pawnbroker Sam Michael was given 18 days to turn the Central MaineYouth Center into the stage for the high-profile rematch between Sonny “The Bear” Liston and Muhammad Ali,fighting for the first time since converting to Islam and discarding his ‘slave name,’ Cassius Clay. “You can’t swing a cat in Lewiston without hitting someone who has a story about the fight,” says filmmaker Gary Robinov of White Dog Arts in Portland,creator of Raising Ali,a documentary film celebrating the 50th anniversary of Lewiston’s moment in the national spotlight. What didThe Louisville Lip make of his legendary win in Maine? Following the film’s release, Robinov and executive producer Charlie Hewitt ,the Maine sculptor and artist,received this letter from the man himself: From The Greatest with Love It’s hard to believe fifty years have passed since Sonny Liston and I met in the ring in Lewiston,Maine.The years have flown by and with it,that young twenty-three- year-old man who had the audacity to step into the ring a second time to face Sonny,has grown older and hopefully wiser with the benefit of time. A smile comes over my face as my wife reads me the request from Sandy Mar- quis,inviting me to participate in the world premiere of the documentary,Raising Ali,a wonderful tribute to the people of Lewiston.Although I’m not able to join you,my spirit is there,dancing and moving,just like I did fifty years ago. It is ironic that Sonny was the town’s favorite to win the match and reclaim the World Heavyweight Title that night. And today it is me, Muhammad Ali, Sonny’s opponent, who arrived in Lewiston for the first time after changing his name and converting to Islam, who is being embraced. I’m humbled that I still provoke conversation and interest in this community but feel blessed to be remembered by so many. I want to thank the citizens of Lewiston for continuing to make me a part of your community and history.And thank you for opening your hearts,minds and com- munity to my Muslim brothers and sisters. May God bless you all and believe it or not,in my book you are The Greatest! With much love and gratitude, Muhammad Ali By Colin W. SaRGenT Contemporary Influences From Maine: FreeportartistAbigailGray Swartz’sillustratedinterpreta- tionofRosietheRiveterasa blackwomanwearingapink ‘Pussyhat’recentlymadea splashonthecoverofThe NewYorker.USMStonecoast MFA alumnaPatriciaSmith drawscrowds.Hervolume BloodDazzlerwasafinalist fortheNationalBook AwardsforPoetry. Contemporary Influences From Maine: FreeportartistAbigailGray tionofRosietheRiveterasa PeRSPeCTive 62 P o R T l a n d MonTHLY MAGAzIne CLoCkWISe FRoM ToP LeFT: STAnLeY WeSTon; CoLLeCTIon oF THe SMITHSonIAn nATIonAL MuSeuM oF AFRICAn AMeRICAn HISToRY AnD CuLTuRe; ALAn kARCHMeR/nMAAHC; InSeT: THe neW YoRkeR; FILe PHoToS; CouRTeSY PHoTo your entire race in that moment.” Conway taught at William S. Richardson School of Law in Hawaii before trading palm trees for pine trees. The Philadelphia na- tive is enthusiastic on the subject of Ma- con Bolling Allen and the historical ties that unite them across time. As America’s first black lawyer, first black justice of the peace, and the cofounder of the country’s first black law practice, Allen carved in- roads into a historically elite practice in- to which, many decades later, Conway is making her own mark. “It makes me feel connected to Maine in a fundamental way,” Conway says. Her eyes light up. “You know what else? I grad- uated from Howard University in Wash- ington D.C., which was actually found- ed by Oliver Otis Howard. He was a Civil War General from Leeds, Maine.” Presi- dent Andrew Johnson appointed Howard Commissioner of the Freedmen’s Bureau challenge to America’s legal community […] at a period when most black people were con- stitutionally enslaved.” Those first pioneering steps into the whitewashed world of law were a laborious uphill struggle. Allen was initially denied admission to the bar in Maine at a time when “anyone of good moral character” was eligible because, as an African Ameri- can, he was not legally a U.S. citizen. Local abolitionist and Allen’s tutor Samuel Fessenden used his influence to persuade the committee of the Cumberland Bar for an admission by examination. Nonetheless, Allen struggled to find clients in Maine and was forced to Massachusetts in 1845 in search of work. Allen, unable to af- ford transportation, walked 50 miles to his Massachusetts Bar exam and still passed, according to historian Ste- phen Kendrick. in 1865. His name can be found in the Mu- seum archives. “The school was steeped in history. It really aimed to imbue us with pride in the black genealogy of the law.” Conway was first introduced to Allen’s legacy through the work of her professor, J. Clay Smith. In the first page of Emancipation: The Making of the Black Lawyer 1844-1944, Clay writes that Allen “presented the first