Jack Johnson vs. James J. Jeffries

'' editorial, May 12, 1910, commenting on the upcoming fight In 1910, former undefeated heavyweight champion James J. Jeffries, came out of retirement to challenge Johnson, saying "I am going into this fight for the sole purpose of proving that a white man is better than a Negro". Aged 35, he had not fought in six years and he had to lose well over in order to get back to his championship fighting weight. Efforts to persuade Jeffries to "retrieve the honor of the white race" began immediately after the Tommy Burns–Johnson fight. Initially Jeffries had no interest in the fight, being quite happy as an alfalfa farmer. However, on October 29, 1909, Johnson and Jeffries signed an agreement to "box for the heavyweight championship of the world" and called promoters to bid for the right to orchestrate the event. Racial tension was brewing in the lead-up to the fight and in order to prevent any harm from coming to either boxer, guns were prohibited within the arena along with the sale of alcohol and anyone who was under the effects of alcohol. Apples were also banned as well as any weapon whatsoever. Behind the racial attitudes which were being instigated by the media was a major investment in gambling for the fight, with 10–7 odds in favor of Jeffries. The lead-up to the bout was peppered with racist press against Johnson; American author Jack London described Jeffries two days before the fight as "the chosen representative of the white race, and this time the greatest of them." Black advocates foresaw violence as an inevitable outcome of such a racial match. Two months before the bout, E. L. Blackshear, principal of Prairie View Normal and Industrial College, the oldest historically black college in Texas, warned in a letter to the New York Times that The next day, a New York Times editorial agreed the fight was risky, but for a very different reason: "If the black man wins, thousands and thousands of his ignorant brothers will misinterpret his victory as justifying claims to much more than mere physical equality with their white neighbors." ==The fight==

The fight took place on July 4, 1910, in front of nearly 20,000 people, at a ring which was built just for the occasion in downtown Reno, Nevada. Jeffries proved unable to impose his will on the younger champion and Johnson dominated the fight. By the 15th round, after Jeffries had been knocked down twice for the first time in his career, Jeffries's corner threw in the towel to end the fight and prevent Jeffries from having a knockout on his record. Johnson later remarked he knew the fight was over in the 4th round when he landed an uppercut and saw the look on Jeffries's face, stating, "I knew what that look meant. The old ship was sinking." The "Fight of the Century" earned Johnson $65,000 (over $ million in dollars) and silenced the critics, who had belittled Johnson's previous victory over Tommy Burns as "empty", claiming that Burns was a false champion since Jeffries had retired undefeated. John L. Sullivan commented after the fight that Johnson won deservedly, fairly, and convincingly: ==Riots and aftermath==

'' noted the explosive nature of Johnson's victory by featuring this cartoon in which a stick of dynamite suggests that it would not have caused even half as much damage as the fight did. The outcome of the fight triggered race riots that evening—the Fourth of July—all across the United States, from Texas and Colorado to New York and Washington, D.C. Johnson's victory over Jeffries had dashed white dreams of finding a "great white hope" to defeat him. Many whites felt humiliated by the defeat of Jeffries. Blacks, on the other hand, were jubilant, and celebrated Johnson's great victory as a victory for racial advancement. Black poet William Waring Cuney later highlighted the black reaction to the fight in his poem "My Lord, What a Morning". Race riots erupted in New York, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New Orleans, Atlanta, St. Louis, Little Rock and Houston. In all, riots occurred in more than 25 states and 50 cities. At least 20 people across the U.S. were killed in the riots, and hundreds more were injured. ==Film of the bout==

Anticipation for the fight sparked motivation to film the event as it was thought to be a guaranteed money-maker. The fight's promoter, George "Tex" Rickard, (who also refereed the bout) sold exclusive film rights. The film was recorded by nine cameramen and is 100minutes long. '''''Jeffries–Johnson World's Championship Boxing Contest''' film, released the year of the fight, received more public attention in the United States than any other film to date and for the next five years, until the 1915 release of The Birth of a Nation''. ==Legacy in media==

• The Great White Hope (1967 play) • The Great White Hope (1970 film) ==See also==