When boxing was a Jewish sport

Excerpts:

“I was fighting as a kid,” said Rickun. “I fought every day. I didn’t hear the word ‘Jew’ directed at me [in a derogatory manner] because if I did, I’d split their heads open. I’d bang guys up if they called some other guys ‘Jew.’”

“I just had no direction at all,” he added. “Maybe that’s why kids like that become fighters.”

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“I think [their memory] has been suppressed, because Jews weren’t so proud of it,” said Bodner in a telephone interview. “The fans [were proud], the parents were [proud] … the opinion makers were not. Jews weren’t supposed to be into violent sports.”