Muhammad Ali’s son ‘detained at Florida airport and repeatedly asked if he is Muslim’
THE son of boxing legend Muhammad Ali has claimed he was repeatedly asked whether he was Muslim after being detained by US border guards.
Muhammad Ali Jr, 44, was travelling with his mother Khalilah Camacho-Ali from Jamaica when they arrived at an airport in Florida on 7 February.
His lawyer Chris Mancini said Ali Jr was questioned for nearly two hours by security officials who asked him “Where did you get your name from?” and “Are you Muslim?”
After acknowledging he was Muslim the border guards at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport continued questioning him, according to a report by the , a newspaper based in the legendary boxer’s hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.
Despite Donald Trump’s executive order banning entry to the US from seven Muslim countries being overturned by the courts earlier this month, there have continued to be reports of people being questioned because of their religion.
RELATED STORIES
Mancini hit out at the controversial policy, telling the : “This is an outrage. I don't know what is going on with Mr Trump's claim that his ban is not religion-based. We do not discriminate in this country based on religion.”
Ali Jr was born in Philadelphia, holds a US passport and has no criminal record.
The US Customs and Border Protection Agency said it “cannot discuss individual travellers; however, all international travellers arriving in the US are subject to CBP inspection”.
Khalilah Camacho-Ali married the boxer, who was then named Cassius Clay, in 1967 at the age of 17 but the couple divorced ten years later.
She had travelled to Jamaica with her son to give a speech about black history before travelling back to the states.
Ali, considered by many to be one of the finest fighters of all-time, died last June at the age of 74 after enduring a long-term battle against Parkinson’s disease.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at [email protected] or call 0207 782 4368.