Muhammad Ali's daughter on his life and the moments of light in his struggle with Parkinson's page 2 of 2

 April 20, 2016                                                                                                   (Page 2 of 2)

“I wasn’t poor but my grand­parents were nice, middle class, regular hard workers.

“My dad taught me to help the less fortunate and look at myself as equal to everyone.

“If a man has two cents in his pocket, you are that man’s equal. And even as a young kid he’d ask me, ‘what’s your purpose?’. He said his purpose was to help people, so that became mine too.”

Maryum recently took her vow to help people to the extreme. Concerned about the high rate of youth reoffending, she was one of seven people who went undercover for 60 days in a tough remand centre.

The group wanted to help expose drug problems and corruption among inmates and guards, and to gain a better understanding of criminals.

Even the guards did not know Maryum was a plant, which left her vulnerable to attack from inmates.

CCTV recorded her experiences in the cells in Clark County – near where her dad grew up in Louisville, Kentucky – for TV series 60 Days In.

Maryum says: “It was scary, especially in the beginning because I don’t know what to expect while living with women who’ve committed real crimes.

“I felt threatened. You’ll have to wait to see how I handle it. I tried to prevent trouble as much as I could.

“Maybe my size, training and dignity prevented people from stepping up to me. Maybe the way I looked helped people not to roll up on me.

“I sensed racism coming from a couple of people. I heard a couple of comments and was treated differently and sometimes ignored.”

Maryum with her dad at a gala event in his honor

Maryum’s time behind bars was rewarding. She says: “The experience made me feel even more grateful for my life. In jail you have to always watch your back.

“Understanding the system from the inside has helped me professionally. Instead of telling people, ‘jail is bad’, I can now explain exactly why young people shouldn’t get entangled in it.”

For now Maryum is concentrating on her work and spending as much of her time off with her dad.

And she has a message for his many fans. She says: “Be happy for him. Please know he’s peaceful and don’t feel bad for my dad.

“My dad is very grateful for his life and what he was able to accomplish. Don’t feel sad for him.

“He’s always accepted his Parkinson’s disease. His life is very peaceful. He doesn’t struggle and he isn’t in pain.

“He’s had Parkinson’s for a long time. Most people don’t last as long as he has with it. He’s a real fighter.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/boxing/muhammad-alis-daughter-life-moments-7798546?