“It Took Me Years to Realize the Inappropriateness”: Laila Ali Was Left in Utter Disbelief When She Realized What Muhammad Ali Had Done

Muhammad Ali was undoubtedly among the greatest boxers of all time in the world. However, his daughter, Laila Ali, also followed in Muhammad Ali’s footsteps and took her father’s legacy to a next level. Despite her fame, very few people know Laila Ali had a very troubled childhood. Ali has written a lot about her childhood in her book ‘Reach.’

Laila Ali used to have a good relationship with her parents in her childhood. However, later it changed, with her parent’s divorce. In her book, she said that she realized a thing later about her father, which seemed to be fine in her childhood. She also shared that it was quite inappropriate for her father to do that.

The time Laila Ali realized her father’s mistake

In her book, Laila told about Muhammad Ali’s special friend, Lonnie Yolanda Ali, who later became his fourth wife. There she said that her father introduced them, Laila and Hana Ali, to his special friend Lonnie Ali. Lonnie was like already a part of the family, even before she became his fourth wife. It was evident that Muhammad Ali and Lonnie had a special connection. Although at that time, she thought it was nothing unusual.

But later she understood that it was ‘inappropriate’ and she wrote, “At that time I didn’t know anything wrong. It took me years to realize the inappropriateness of a married man introducing his kids to a special friend like Lonnie.” Not only her father, but Laila Ali also blamed her mother for her parenting.

Read more: Meet Laila Ali’s Children: One Inherited Muhammad Ali’s Iconic Look

Laila Ali had a troubled childhood

Laila Ali’s mother Veronica Porsche and Muhammad Ali got divorced in 1986, and she was only 10 at that time. This traumatic experience left a deep scar on Laila’s life, as she had to live through her parents’ divorce and navigate its aftermath. She was no longer able to have a traditional family structure, and this had a lasting effect on her.

After the divorce, her mother married a musician, and Muhammad Ali married Lonnie. So she did not get the right parenthood. In her book, she talked about how her parents’ volatile relationship caused her to feel neglected and unsupported. She concluded it by saying , “Parents have complicated lives, like all human lives, they also make mistakes.”

Watch this story: How Laila Ali found her reins in male dominated sports

What do you think about Laila Ali’s childhood?