Racist abuse, controversy and reconciliation

Russell's life was marked by an uphill battle against racism and controversial actions and statements in response to perceived racism. As a child, the young Russell witnessed how his parents were victims of racial abuse, and eventually moved into housing projects to escape the daily torrent of bigotry.^[3] When he later became a standout amateur basketball player at USF, Russell recalled how he and his few fellow African American colleagues were jeered by white students.^[11] Even after he became a star on the Boston Celtics, Russell was the victim of racial abuse. When the NBA All-Stars toured the U.S. in the 1958 offseason, white hotel owners in segregated North Carolina denied rooms to Russell and his black teammates, causing him to later write in his memoir Go Up for Glory, "It stood out, a wall which understanding cannot penetrate. You are a Negro. You are less. It covered every area. A living, smarting, hurting, smelling, greasy substance which covered you. A morass to fight from."^[27] Before the 1961–62 season, Russell refused to play in an exhibition game in Lexington, Kentucky when he and his black teammates were refused service at a local restaurant.^[53]

As a consequence, Russell was extremely sensitive to all racial prejudice: according to Taylor, he often perceived insults even if others did not.^[17] He was active in the Black Power movement and supported Muhammad Ali's decision to refuse to be drafted.^[78] He was often called "Felton X," a mockery of the Nation of Islam's tradition of replacing a European slave name with an "X," and even purchased land in Liberia.^[55] Russell's public statements became increasingly militant, so far that he was quoted in a 1963 Sports Illustrated interview with the words: "I dislike most white people because they are people... I like most blacks because I am black", expressing that "human" was a negative trait and "black" was a positive trait which were mutually exclusive.^{[clarification needed][55]} However, when his white Celtics teammate Frank Ramsey asked whether he hated him, Russell claimed to be misquoted, but few believed it.^[55] Also, Taylor remarks that Russell overlooked that his career was only made possible by the white people who were proven anti-racists, namely his white high school coach George Powles (the person who encouraged him to play basketball), his white college coach Phil Woolpert (who integrated USF basketball), white Celtics coach Red Auerbach (who is universally regarded as an anti-racist pioneer and made him the first black NBA coach), and white Celtics owner Walter A. Brown, who gave him a high $24,000 rookie contract, just $1,000 shy of the top earning veteran Bob Cousy.^[56]

Nevertheless, as a result of repeated racial bigotry, Russell refused to respond to fan acclaim or friendship from his neighbors, thinking it was insincere and hypocritical. He decided that the world had given him nothing, so in return, he could give the world nothing. This attitude contributed to his legendary bad rapport with fans and journalists.^[27] He alienated the Boston Celtics fans by saying, "You owe the public the same it owes you, nothing! I refuse to smile and be nice to the kiddies."^[55] This supported the opinion that Russell (who was the highest paid Celtic) was egotistical, paranoid and hypocritical, and even the FBI described Russell in his file as "an arrogant Negro who won't sign autographs for white children".^[55] The already hostile atmosphere between Russell and Boston hit its nadir when vandals broke into his house, covered the walls with racist graffiti, damaged his trophies and defecated into the beds.^[55] In response, Russell described Boston as a "flea market of racism".^[79] After his retirement, he described the Boston press as corrupt and racist; in response, Boston sports journalist Larry Claflin claimed that Russell himself was the real racist.^[80] Despite his refusal to sign autographs, he accepted a $250,000 contract to sign 5,000 pieces of memorabilia.^[81]

Russell, who invariably saw himself as a victim of the media, was present neither when his Number 6 jersey was retired in 1972, nor when he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1975, shunning the limelight both times.^[53] Despite the bitterness that Russell felt toward Boston, in recent years he has visited the city on a regular basis, something he never did in the years immediately after his retirement.^[82] Russell still has sore feelings towards the city, but there has been something of a reconciliation in recent years.^[82] When Russell originally retired, he demanded that his jersey be retired in an empty Boston Garden.^[83] In 1995, the Celtics left Boston Garden and entered the FleetCenter, now the TD Garden, and as the main festive act, the Boston organization wanted to re-retire Russell's jersey in front of a sellout audience.^[56] Perennially wary of the "racist" city of Boston, Russell decided to make amends and gave his approval. On May 6, 1999 the Celtics re-retired Russell's jersey in a ceremony attended by Russell's on-court rival Chamberlain, along with Celtics legend Larry Bird and Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The crowd gave Russell a prolonged standing ovation, which brought tears to his eyes.^[83] Russell was visibly shaken at this outpour of adoration. He thanked Chamberlain for taking him to the limit and "making [him] a better player" and the crowd for "allowing [him] to be a part of their lives."^[56]

On December 2, 2008, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and The Mayor's Office of New Bostonians awarded Russell the 2008 We Are Boston Leadership Awards. Russell, who according to the mayor flew a "red-eye flight" to be there, attended the annual event with his daughter. He was visibly grateful and shared anecdotes of racial bigotry when he first came to Boston as a player and bought a home in Reading, Massachusetts. Russell congratulated the mayor on wanting to be a "mayor for all of Boston" and commented that it was a city that truly changed.