by John Zenoni
What an amazing documentary on the late, great tennis legend and humanitarian Arthur Ashe. I have always respected him because of the way he always presented and carried himself in public. There was something about him that just screamed ‘class’ and this documentary only confirms it.
'Citizen Ashe' tells his life story from his perspective as well as that of his brother, fellow tennis players, his widow, friends and journalists. It really is a fascinating insight into how he developed the love of the game of tennis while being the only person of color on the major tennis circuits and how he handled being the ‘loner.’ While some criticized his lack of involvement in the movements of his time, many soon realized that in his commentaries and public speaking assignments that he actually was speaking out on things such as racism, white supremacy and rights for all people of color. The key was in how he said and approached it.
I so appreciate, too, how he handled himself when he, unfortunately, had to go public with his AIDS diagnosis. The man just wanted privacy but when he found out that the news was going to be published he broke the news himself and did so in order to protect his family. He was definitely a humanitarian and someone that I wish was still around today. Very good documentary about a wonderful man!
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