Muhummad Ali to Visit Ancesteral Home in Ireland

http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/?sid=528923 Just thought it was interesting an African-American embracing all parts of his heritage. London, Aug.9 : Boxing legend Muhammad Ali is to visit his ancestral Irish home in September. The former world heavyweight champion has accepted an invitation to see the birthplace of his great-grandfather in Ennis, Co Clare, on September 1, The Telegraph reports. He is due to visit Dublin for a charity event the previous day Members of Ennis Town Council are expected to make the 67-year-old, who is fighting Parkinson's disease, the first Honorary Freeman of Ennis Town during his trip. Mayor Frankie Neylon said thousands of visitors will come to the town to see the world famous boxer. Ali's great-grandfather Abe Grady emigrated from his home on the Turnpike Road in Ennis to the United States in the 1860s. Grady sailed from Cappa Harbour in Kilrush, Co Clare, eventually settling in Kentucky, where he married an African-American woman. Their son also married an African-American and one of the daughters of that union was Ali's mother, named Odessa Lee Grady. She married Cassius Clay senior, and they settled in Louisville, where their son was initially given his father's name on his birth in 1942. He later changed his name to Muhammad Ali when he converted to the Nation of Islam after winning the world title in 1964. Mayor Neylon said further details of Ali's visit would be finalised during a special meeting of Ennis Town Council on Monday week.