The story of Jack Johnson, the Black boxer who sparked race riots after his world heavyweight win

“To know that somebody in an era of just the most appalling racism decided as a very young boy that he was going to be something unique and special and then set out to do that is, people talk about the American dream, which is largely a myth, but he embodies it,” according to Geoffrey C. Ward, author of ‘Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson.’

As a Black fighter, he was predominately restricted to facing only Black opponents — he fought Jeffries’ younger brother in 1902 — competing under the confines of the ‘Colored Heavyweight Championship of the World’ category which he won in 1903. At the time in some areas of the USA, interracial boxing was banned.

Johnson was the first African American to hold the world heavyweight boxing title when he beat Canadian Tommy Burns in Sydney, Australia.

Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

However, then-current world heavyweight champion Tommy Burns was more open-minded, promising to defend his title against “all comers, none barred. By this I mean Black, Mexican, Indian or any other nationality without regard to color, size or nativity.”

Burns initially wanted “to give the White boys a chance” first — but Johnson finally got his shot and he took it with both hands.

In 1908, in front of a crowd of 20,000, Johnson was handily beating Burns in Sydney, Australia, before police stopped the fight in the 14th round to prevent Johnson from knocking out his opponent. Nevertheless, Johnson’s victory was secure, making him the first-ever Black heavyweight boxing champion.