October 9, 2004

NEW YORK — Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, the 52-year-old former light heavyweight champion, was trying to juggle a handful of ringing cell phones Tuesday afternoon right after a press conference at Gallagher's Steak House previewing Thursday's "Broadway Boxing" card at the Manhattan Center. While he still is active as a trainer, most of these calls were not asking him about that particular profession. Eddie Mustafa Muhammad is so very much in demand these days primarily because he serves as president of JAB, the Joint Association of Boxers, the nascent union of professional boxers, which is affiliated with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT). And those duties with JAB are demanding more and more of his time as this boxers' union signs more fighters, signs with more promoters, and step by step moves from being a noble and overdue idea into becoming a functioning and effective organization.

The latest promoter to agree to work with JAB is Lou DiBella. Starting with this Sept. 30 card, fighters on DiBella Entertainment shows will become members of JAB.

"It's always a pleasure to be back home," said the Brooklyn-born Muhammad, "and especially a pleasure to come home for a worthy cause." As he and I talked, he fielded inquiries from other people at this press conference, watched his collection of phones, and tried with me to get the attention of a waiter to bring over dessert.

There was no mistaking his satisfaction at having DiBella signing with JAB. "Lou DiBella is on board," beamed Muhammad. "Everybody knows how much Lou has been a revolutionary in our business. His hindsight is 20-20. He sees far beyond what this business needs. And he realized the fact that it needs a union. That's why we got together. That's why I'm here."

DiBella becomes the second promoter to sign with JAB, following DiBella's friend and fellow New Yorker, Cedric Kushner, who promoted the first unionized boxing card, also at the Manhattan Center, in April of this year. The way things seem to be going, this club of promoters running unionized shows will expand very quickly.

"Every day we get calls from different promoters. I got ten promoters that are very interested. Even at this press conference that we're sitting at now, promoters are walking up to me wanting my card. I'm accepting their card. They want to also join [with] this union," stated Muhammad.

As to fighters, they have been joining JAB in droves. "There are probably over 500 fighters signed up already," he continued. "It's going to get big and bigger."

While Muhammad will stay in town for this Sept. 30 show, he will be unable to remain in New York until Saturday's Madison Square Garden card headlined by the return of Felix "Tito" Trinidad against Ricardo Mayorga.

"I have to leave," he stated with mixed feelings. "I have a very important meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, again organizing union fighters out there also. So I would love to see 'Tito' Trinidad since he's one of my favorite fighters, but I have to leave and take care of some other stuff."

Nor was he able to attend Wednesday's prefight press conference at the Garden, either. "I have some more organizing to do," he explained. "I'm always organizing."

While Muhammad won't be able to attend the Garden show, a key part of that organizing had to do with that show's promoter, Don King.

"My attorney sat with King over the weekend," said Muhammad, referring to labor lawyer Walter Kane. "Walter sat with Don King over the weekend, had some dialogue," he elaborated. As to just if and when King will sign with JAB, Muhammad said, "Knowing Don King, you're going to be in dialogue for a while. So we're still in dialogue. But it's going to be OK."

The working plan is for an agreement between JAB and King to start with the Nov. 13 Madison Square Garden card, which is composed mainly of heavyweights and is headlined by WBA champ John Ruiz defending his title against Andrew Golota and IBF champ Chris Byrd defending against Jameel McCline.

"My attorney left with a positive input. As far as I'm concerned, there may be a union show the 13th," Muhammad said.

Don King, of course, was at Wednesday's press conference hyping his show at the Garden, and confirmed what Muhammad said.

"I'm looking forward to talking to Eddie," the world's best-known boxing promoter said of the JAB president. "We're going to see if we can get together with the Teamsters and make some kind of promotion in November on the heavyweight card. And we are just delighted that we have an opportunity to talk to the great Jimmy Hoffa, the son of the most terrific union man in the world, Jimmy Hoffa," referring to the current General President of the Teamsters, James P. Hoffa, and his father, the legendary James R. Hoffa, the former General President of the Teamsters.

"So we're just happy that I have an opportunity to maybe speak to them, work with them, for the betterment of America," stated King is his usually flamboyant way.

This is why Muhammad remains so optimistic. While a deal with King has not been finalized, Muhammad said, "We're still in dialogue," adding a prediction: "But it will happen. It will happen."

The ramifications of an agreement between JAB and King would be enormous. This would likely solidify JAB's fight to come into existence, help it become a stable and well-grounded union organization, and tip the balance in its favor toward its goal of unionizing the whole boxing business. But, as is also clear, much more work remains to be done.

Asked about which other promoters may also be coming on board, Muhammad replied, "Dan Goossen. We started a dialogue with Dan. We started a dialogue with Don King. So it's just going to be a matter of time before they sit at the table again with us and say, 'We better join this thing, because it's getting too big.' "

The always-controversial King is not the only high profile person getting ready to work with JAB. On Muhammad's hectic itinerary is a long journey which promises a great honor.

"I'll be in South Africa," he informed us. "I'm going to sit with Nelson Mandela." This historic trip is now being planned for November. "It's being set up now as we speak, by Rodney and Joel Berman. They're the biggest promoters in Africa."

Mandela's connection to JAB is based on two major factors: The former president of South Africa was an amateur boxer in his youth. The trade union movement in South Africa played a critical role in the liberation struggle, of which Mandela was the main leader, against the now-defeated racist system of apartheid. So Mandela's involvement with JAB, even if only symbolically, is a natural.

"With a name like Nelson Mandela, that should be associated with the unions, like he is, that would only bolster our membership, big-time," Muhammad said. "All we want to do is the right thing for the fighter, and that's always been his fight, to do the right thing for the working man, the blue collar guy. That's what he wants to do, do the right thing. Make sure at the end of the day, when they decide to retire, they retire with dignity. We're not looking for handouts."

It is this theme of protecting the fighters' long-neglected interests which Muhammad stressed over and over again. "All I want is endorsements," he said. "Let them see what I'm doing. All I want to do is just show them how I'm trying to establish at the end of their career they could go out with dignity, and a few dollars, and their health."

Interestingly, while top-named fighters are being sought to sign up as union members, Muhammad believes that the main beneficiaries of JAB will not be the champions and the well-known fighters, but the average, grassroots fighters who never attain titles or much notoriety.

"They don't need us for our support, because they can sustain themselves," he said of the champions and major fighters. "There's only one percent that make it in this game. The other 99 percent, those are the guys I'm gearing towards. The up-and-coming guys that are coming out of the amateurs that are turning pro. Those are the guys that I'm targeting."

While JAB has been gaining more and more support from the fighters themselves, there is one element of the boxing world which curiously has not shown much enthusiasm towards it: the boxing media.

Muhammad told me, "You've been the only guy that's gonna support us, and that has been supporting us." He did already know that I am a long-time union man myself, and have been a member of the National Writers Union, Local 1981 of the UAW, for many years. I also pointed out how Howie Sirota, founder of this site, Boxingranks.com, recently posted an article entitled "How To Reform Boxing," which includes as a key plank, "Make Professional Boxing a Closed Shop for the Teamsters."

"I appreciate that," said Muhammad. But he also bristled at "some people throwing darts" at JAB among the writers. That discussion, perhaps, is a subject for another time.

As we got ready to conclude our talk, I asked him about the JAB web site, which is at: http://www.boxersunion.org/.

"Same web site," he confirmed. "Nothing's going to change. It's going to get bigger and better."

Speaking of getting bigger, the waiter had finally brought over dessert to us. "Now I can eat my pie, and you can eat your cake," he said with a laugh.

Something tells me that with Eddie Mustafa Muhammad as president of JAB, the smiling, laughing, and celebrating have just begun. And when—not if—boxing becomes unionized, a new era just may dawn for this often sad and tragic business and sport.

The article originally appeared on Boxingranks.com and was written by Eddie Goldman on October 1, 2004.

©2003-2007 Joint Association of Boxers
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