Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay)Initially, Muhammad Ali was refused entry to the Nation of Islam(often called the Black Muslims at the time) due to his boxing career. However, after winning the championship from Liston in 1964, the Nation of Islam changed their minds and agreed to recruit him as a member. On Friday, March 6, 1964, Malcolm X took Ali on a tour of the UN building (for a second time). The minister then announced that Ali would be granted his "X", renaming him Cassius X. That same night, Elijah Muhammad recorded a statement over the phone to be played over the radio that Clay would be renamed Muhammad (one who is worthy of praise) Ali. Only a few journalists accepted it at that time. The adoption of this name symbolized his new identity as a member of the Nation of Islam. The name change to "Muhammad Ali" also led to the end of Ali's friendship with Malcolm X, as he would leave the NOI a couple of weeks after Ali joined.
______________________________________________ Ali converted from the Nation of Islam sect to mainstream Sunni Islam in 1975. In a 2004 autobiography, written with daughter Hana Yasmeen Ali, Muhammad Ali attributes his conversion to the shift toward Sunni Islam made by Warith Deen Muhammad after he gained control of the Nation of Islam upon the death of Elijah Muhammad in 1975. Later in 2005 he embraced spiritual practices of Sufism.
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