Jack Johnson

Barry Bonds

Taylor Dill-Reese a writer for the New York Times has an article in which he compares baseball player, Barry Bonds to boxer, Jack Johnson for the animosity both received by the white American public.
In 1913, the government hid behind the Mann Act to prosecute a powerful, prominent black man it felt needed to be taught a lesson. Now the government has invested eight years and millions of dollars to go after another prominent, powerful black man with a vigor that suggests there is more in play than the altruistic goal of protecting the integrity of a grand jury.
The prosecution, regardless of the verdict, was a colossal misuse of time and money aimed, it seems, at making an example of a larger-than-life figure whose greatest sin was being an unlikable home run king.
Sources: http://newsone.com

Jack Johnson