"US boxing champion Emile Griffith gained notoriety in 1962 when he brutally defeated the Cuban fighter Benny Paret to win the world welterweight title. Ten days after the fight, Paret, who had directed a homophobic slur at Griffith during the weigh-in died from his injuries. In Knock Out!, Reinhard Kleist draws a powerful, emotive portrait of a bisexual Black athlete who, facing racism and homophobia in 1960s America, found success in the world of boxing. This is the true story of a fierce and ambitious fighter, and of a knock-out blow that ended one life and changed a second forever."-- cover page 4.
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