The unsigned draft card of Louisville native and legendary boxer Muhammad Ali will go to auction for the first time in October, according to listing for Christie’s.
Issued March 14, 1967 to “Cassius Marsellus Clay Jr.,” the card represents “a pivotal moment in Ali’s public resistance to the Vietnam War,” auction officials wrote in the listing. According to the auction house, which specializes in fine art, luxury and antique sales, the card has an estimated value between $3 million and $5 million. The auction is scheduled to begin Oct. 10 and end Oct. 28.
Instructions on the back of the card directed Ali to have it “at all times.” The line on the front of the card, where registrants were to sign, remains blank.
“His draft card symbolizes the moment when Ali transcended even his own status as a boxing legend to become a global symbol of courage, charisma and integrity,” officials with Christie’s wrote.
After receiving the card, Ali appeared at an induction center in Houston, but when Ali’s name was called, he did not step forward. In a written statement, Ali told the press his “consciousness as a Muslim minister” and his “personal convictions” prompted his decision to reject the call to be inducted in the armed services.”
“As to the threat voiced by certain elements to ‘strip’ me of my title, this is merely a continuation of the same artificially induced prejudice and discrimination,” Ali wrote. “Regardless of the difference in my outlook, I insist upon my right to pursue my livelihood in accordance with the same rights granted to other men and women who have disagreed with the policies of whatever Administration was in power at the time.”
Officials said Ali’s actions “helped galvanize the growing anti-war movement.”
“By taking this step, Ali not only faced criminal charges and imprisonment but was also stripped of his boxing titles, depriving him of his livelihood for four years. This would prove to be his longest — and greatest — fight,” Christie’s officials wrote.
In an interview with The Athletic, Rasheda Ali Walsh — Ali’s daughter who was in possession of the card — described it as “a freedom piece” that will be “relevant for hundreds of years to come.”
Wanting the card to stay with her family, she gave the card to her sons, Nico Ali Walsh and Biaggio Ali Walsh.
“But we decided that Daddy belongs to the world and his message of inspiration should be shared with the world,” Rasheda Ali Walsh told The Athletic. “In a perfect world, I would want this item on display in an institution where people can not only be inspired by his courage and conviction … but also be educated about it and empowered by it.”
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Muhammad Ali’s draft card to be auctioned for the first time