Celebrating Bill Russell’s 86th birthday in photos

On Boston Celtics legendary big man Bill Russell’s 86th birthday, we celebrate his long and rich life and contributions to basketball and civil rights.

THE FIGHT CONTINUES

For Russell, the struggle for civil rights is not a box you check off, but a constant fight for all of us, even today.

Russell kneeling to show support for Stephon Clark, a Sacramento resident shot and killed by police earlier this month while holding a cellphone in 2017 (Bill Russell/Twitter).

 

Russell finally accepted — in a private ceremony with his wife and friends — his Hall of Fame ring. In 1975, he refused to be the the first black player to go into the Hall before Chuck Cooper and other pioneers of Coopers era.
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