Perry Wallace and Strong Inside were highlighted today in the "heroes" section of the Queen Latifah Show blog. Check out my guest post here. ... [Continue Reading]
In Their Own Words: Classmates Recall Wallace
As Strong Inside begins to hit bookstores, I’ve started hearing from some people who attended Vanderbilt with Perry Wallace and have new stories to share. In several spots in the book, I write about the often awkward encounters between white and ... [Continue Reading]
James Meredith on Race and Sports
Genma Holmes continues her monthlong series on Strong Inside with an historic interview with James Meredith on Oct. 25 at 9 a.m. CT. Meredith talks to Genma about his experience desegregating the University of Mississippi, addresses the fact that ... [Continue Reading]
The Dr. Edwin Hines Review
Earlier this month, Nashville radio host Genma Holmes invited Dr. Edwin Hines to join me for a conversation on Strong Inside for her show, Living Your Best Life. Dr. Hines attended Meharry Medical College in Nashville at the time Perry Wallace was at ... [Continue Reading]
First National TV – CSPAN2’s BookTV
CSPAN2's BookTV was on hand to record my panel discussion at Nashville's Southern Festival of Books. Historian Linda Wynn hosted the discussion with the New York Times' Clay Risen (author of "Bill of the Century") and me. Having attended the festival ... [Continue Reading]
Oct. 16, 1968 – When Sports and Race Converged
It was on this date 46 years ago, Oct. 16, 1968, that U.S. Olympic sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos gave their famous Black Power salute at the Mexico City Olympics. On that same day, 1,400 miles north in Nashville, Godfrey Dillard was demoted ... [Continue Reading]
Tip-Off at the Southern Festival of Books
Nashville's fantastic Southern Festival of Books is considered one of the top book fairs in the country, so it was a big thrill to speak publicly for the first time about Strong Inside at the Southern Festival yesterday. Historian Linda Wynn ... [Continue Reading]
Rave Review from SLAM Magazine
The first national print review is in for Strong Inside, and it's a thrilling one from one of the popular basketball magazine SLAM. Reviewer Sherman Johnson labels Strong Inside "a heartbreaking case of staggering genius." Check it out for yourself ... [Continue Reading]
Godfrey Dillard Runs for Michigan Office
While Perry Wallace was a solitary pioneer on the Vanderbilt varsity team from 1968-70, he had a black teammate on the freshman team in 1967, Godfrey Dillard. Dillard's experience at Vanderbilt is detailed in Strong Inside. Like Wallace, Dillard has ... [Continue Reading]
The Genma Holmes Interview
Genma Holmes launched a monthlong series on "Strong Inside" this morning with an interview we taped a few weeks ago. Later installments in the series will include interviews with Perry Wallace, other figures in the book, and many others with a ... [Continue Reading]