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NFL great and civil rights activist Jim Brown dies aged 87

May 20, 2023

The NFL Hall of Famer turned Hollywood actor and civil rights activist passed away at his home on Thursday.

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Jim Brown pictured in 1984
Jim Brown passed away peacefully in his Los Angeles home on Thursday night, May 18, 2023, with his wife by his sideImage: Lennox McLendon/AP Photo/picture alliance

US football Hall of Famer, Hollywood actor and Civil Rights activist Jim Brown died on Thursday at the age of 87 at his home in Los Angeles.

A family spokesperson on Friday said Brown's passing had been peaceful and his wife Monique had been by his side.

"To the world, he was an activist, actor, and football star," Monique Brown said in an Instagram post. "To our family, he was a loving husband, father, and grandfather. Our hearts are broken."

USA Jim Brown pictured in 2018
Jim Brown led the NFL in rushing in eight of his nine seasons and was voted the league's most valuable player four timesImage: Joshua Roberts/REUTERS

One of the NFL's greats

Brown is considered one of American football's greatest players and was named Most Valuable Player in 1965. He retired at the peak of his career after leading the Cleveland Browns to win the NFL Championship in 1964.

"Jim Brown is a true icon of not just the Cleveland Browns but the entire NFL," said Browns owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam. "He was certainly the greatest to ever put on a Browns uniform and arguably one of the greatest players in NFL history."

Brown would then go on to become a successful Hollywood actor and appeared in more than 30 films including Oliver Stone's "Any Given Sunday" and World War II epic "The Dirty Dozen."

Brown used his profile to amplify the voices of Black Americans in the fight for equality.

In 1967, Brown joined activist athletes in supporting Muhammad Ali's refusal to be drafted into the U.S. military.

Later years would see Brown working to help curb gang violence in LA with the founding of Amer-I-Can, a program to help disadvantaged inner-city youth and ex-convicts.

Jim Brown pictured with Muhammad Ali in 1966
Brown was a prominent figure in the Black Pride movement of the 1960s and supported Muhammad Ali's refusal to be drafted into the US militaryImage: AP Photo/picture alliance

Brown's admissions of domestic violence

Brown faced allegations of domestic violence but was never convicted. He admitted to The Los Angeles Times that he regretted slapping women and had gone on a self-improvement program to manage his anger.

"In a perfect world, I don't think any man should slap anyone," he wrote. "I don't start fights, but sometimes I don't walk away from them. It hasn't happened in a long time, but it's happened, and I regret those times. I should have been more in control of myself, stronger, more adult," Brown said in his 1989 memoir "Out of Bounds."

He was divorced after 13 years of marriage from Sue Brown, with whom he had three children.

Brown is survived by his wife Monique and their child.

kb/sms (AP, Reuters)