Born 1878 in Galveston, TX., Jack Arthur Johnson, nicknamed the Galveston Giant, the son of ex-slaves who, at the height of the Jim Crow era, became the first African American world heavyweight boxing champion in 1908 when he beat Tommy Burns. He defended the title in a 1910 match that sparked race riots nationwide when he beat Jim Jeffries. Johnson was convicted in 1913 for violating a racist Jim Crow-era law that made it illegal to transport a white woman – who he would later marry – across state lines “for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral purpose.”
President Trump said at a ceremony in the Oval Office on Thursday that Johnson is “very worthy” of a full pardon. “I am taking this very righteous step, I believe, to correct a wrong that occurred in our history, and to honor a truly legendary boxing champion, legendary athlete and a person that, when people got to know him, they really liked him and they really thought he was treated unfairly,” Trump said.
Resolutions were approved by both the House and Senate in the last Congress urging Johnson’s pardon, but then-President Obama did not sign off on the measure.