With all the racial profiling going on in the world today, it almost seems strange that a very famous name would find themselves detained by customs officials. However, that allegedly happened at a Florida Airport when none other than Muhammad Ali Jr. was detained by immigration officials.
Muhammad Ali
It seems strange that someone might not recognize the name Muhammad Ali, which was the moniker taken on by Cassius Clay, one of the greatest boxers in this history of the sport. However, that seems to be the case when the son of the boxer who shares his famous dad's name was detained by immigration officials because he had an Arabic-sounding name.
Ali Jr. was traveling back to the United States with his mother Khalilah Camacho-Ali, the second wife of the late boxing legend. The two were delivering a speech in Montego Bay for Black History Month and returning home at the time.
Mother was allowed to leave
While the son of Muhammad Ali was allegedly detained and held by immigration officials, his mother was allowed to leave. Interestingly, Camacho-Ali was released when she showed the officials a photo of her and her late husband, which proved that she was okay to leave the airport and return home. However, Muhammad Ali Jr. was not released and was held and questioned for two hours by officials at the airport. According to his attorney, the officials continued to ask if he was of the Muslim religion and how he got his name, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was named after his famous father.
Born in Philadelphia
This is all part of the recent actions by President Donald Trump, who is attempting to limit the access to America by immigrants from certain countries, specifically those of the Muslim religion. Ali admitted that he was Muslim but the customs officials continued to demand to know where he was born.
Muhammad Ali Jr.
was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1972 and is an American citizen who holds a United States passport. Despite that, the officials allegedly grilled him for two hours. When contacted, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said that they can't release the names of those detained but have the right to stop all international travelers.
