“I teamed up with Jim Brown to support Muhammad Ali and his decision not to take part in the Vietnam War.” <\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

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————<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bill Russell knew exactly how he wants to be remembered long after he’s gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“If someone asked me to write my epitaph, I would keep it short and simple,” he wrote in his book, Go Up For Glory<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That short and simple epitaph is told in six words: “Bill Russell. He was a man.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This man, who dedicated his entire life to social justice before taking his last breathe on Sunday at age 88,<\/a> was the epitome of selflessness. This man, who was strong in every sense of the word, set the stage for generations after him. So they too can stand tall and proudly declare: “No, I will not shut up and dribble.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This man faced constant roadblocks. But he never turned back, never allowed his enemies to dictate where or when he can fight, speak, thrive or pursue his dream. This man grew wiser and became more motivated despite the odds, finding inspiration from the true champions of his time and keeping faith in the road ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This man, who was inspired by a defiant woman who refused to give up her seat on a bus in 1955, raved about his hero’s courageous act, saying her bravery left a “lifelong impression on me.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Rosa Parks, a Black seamstress, was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white rider on a public bus in Montgomery, Alabama,” Bill wrote in his book. “A young minister from Atlanta, Martin Luther King, Jr., led a boycott of the Montgomery bus system. For nearly a year, Black people stayed off the buses until a 1956 U.S. Supreme Court decision outlawed segregation on the buses. Over the next few years, sit-ins ended segregation in restaurants and hotels, and Black people who had been denied the right to vote were registered for the first time.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In that same year of Rosa’s arrest, two white men brutally murdered Emmett Till, accusing him of flirting with a white woman. This horrific tragedy, Bill said, was another one of the defining moments that ignited his desire to fight for justice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“They beat him severely, gouging out an eye before shooting him in the head and dumping his body into a nearby river,” Bill wrote. “His mother insisted that his casket be open at the funeral, so the whole world could see the brutality of what had been done to her son.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bill Russell, the cornerstone of the Boston Celtics dynasty that won eight straight titles and 11 overall during his career, died Sunday.

He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, the nation\u2019s highest civilian honor. Russell was 88.

More: https:\/\/t.co\/7bYfbNLIUZ<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/QIaUcdeMo9<\/a><\/p>— ESPN (@espn) July 31, 2022<\/a><\/blockquote>