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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: I'll be doing Q & A, so please don't be shy. I'll talk to you about anything—even basketball. (Laughter)

Question: Did you change your name to Kareem, and why?

Jabbar: My birth name was not good. I took the name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar when I accepted Islam—my family name was Alcindor from the West Indies—and it all had to do with my spiritual conversion. Mohammed Ali took a lot of heat for all of us when he made the choice to change his name and I was very fortunate to come behind him and not have to deal with as much of it because of his sacrifice.

Question: How have tensions with Muslims in the U.S. changed since the Harlem Renaissance?

Jabbar: I certainly did not ever see any tension between Islam and American culture that we've had since 9/11. What's happened since 9/11 is very unique in my mind. Muslims in America were a very small minority and really were a blip on the map, in terms of the number Muslims and their impact on American society—very minimal, very minimal. Then we have fanatics who come and do what they did and cause the pain and fear that’s been part of the situation since 9/11. A lot of people don't know that a number of Muslims fought and died during the American Revolution. The French contingent under Lafayette had cavalry and infantry soldiers that fought during the last weeks of the American Revolutionary War; people aren’t very much aware of that. The first country to recognize America as a sovereign nation was the kingdom of Morocco.

Question: What would you have done if you had been around in the Harlem Renaissance?

Jabbar: Actually, it's very personal for me because my grandfather emigrated from the Island of Trinidad and went to New York in 1917. He was part of The Great Migration to New York that occurred that created the Harlem Renaissance. So I can just imagine myself as my grandfather, walking the streets and being able to hear all this great music—the music of Fats Waller and Louis Armstrong. And I guess for me, personally, I paid a lot more attention to my piano lessons. (Laughter)

Question: How can we get reluctant young people to read?

Jabbar: In trying to get young people to read, you have to be able to show them it's something that they need—it's something that will enhance them and make them more of what they want to be. A lot of young people don't understand that. They think whatever it is that they're focused on is all they need to do. I'm coaching now for Los Angeles Lakers and I deal with young men who are making millions of dollars a year, yet they are challenged to reading a written page. And it hurts me. I don't want to see that they're not fully developed.

Question: What’s your greatest basketball moment?

Jabbar: I've been so blessed to have so many great basketball moments. As a professional athlete, for me, beating the Boston Celtics in 1985 was my greatest moment. (Applause)

Question: I am very proud to meet you and stand here before you with my father-in-law, Dr. E.J. Josey. (Applause) And I would like to ask also if you would indulge us if we could have a photo with you and a picture if that’s possible because he'll be leaving tomorrow morning before your book signing? But I wanted to say how proud I am to be able to say these words to you with him here with me. You have always embodied the truest spirit of athletes and you have done it with grace and dignity. And I'm very enlightened by all you have done to enhance the role of athletes as activists. You are the truest tradition of what is good and the spirit of the athlete.

Jabbar: That's why my book On the Shoulders of Giants. If it were not for people like Dr. Ralph Bunche, who was a scholar-athlete or Paul Robeson, again I would not have had the example to achieve what I have achieved. So I want to thank the good Doctor because I know he probably contributed to that in some way.

Loriene Roy: Thank you, Dr. Jabbar.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Thank you.
(Applause)