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Remembering Perry Wallace: The Athletic

December 19, 2017

Remembering Perry Wallace: The Athletic

Thank you to Seth Davis of The Athletic for the opportunity to write a remembrance of Perry Wallace, who passed away Dec. 1.

For Perry Wallace, it was never about him.

Every time the spotlight shined on the sports and civil rights pioneer, he used the platform to advocate for others.

A law professor at American University who was the first African American basketball player in the SEC, Wallace died on Dec. 1 in Rockville, Md. Two weeks earlier, Vanderbilt athletic director David Williams, deputy AD Candice Lee and I flew up from Nashville to visit him one last time.

Though his bedridden 6-foot-5 frame seemed smaller and his hair was gone and his skin was pale, in other respects Wallace was the same as ever. He still raised his index finger to make a point. He still had his deadpan sense of humor. He still made everyone else feel at ease. And he issued a challenge to us to work on behalf of others. Read the rest of the article here.

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  • “In a magnificently reported, nuanced
    but raw account of basketball and racism in the South during the 1960s, Andrew Maraniss tells the story of Perry Wallace’s struggle, loneliness, perseverance and eventual self-realization. A rare story about physical and intellectual courage that is both shocking and triumphant. ”

    Bob Woodward, Washington Post associate editor and author

Watch Andrew Maraniss talk about his inspiration to write Strong Inside, featuring archival footage of Perry Wallace in action.
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