One of the most fulfilling parts about working on Strong Inside over the last eight years has been the chance to interact regularly with Perry Wallace. We talked or exchanged emails hundreds of times on topics related to the book, but also spoke about other things, too – families, careers, current events. Perry’s life is not defined by his basketball career. In fact, those who know him as a law professor today would get very few if any clues from him about his pioneering past. And while his interests are broad (my favorite example: he gave a lecture on global warming at a university in France – in French), he maintains a special interest in human rights. In one case, that interest took him to Kenya to work for the release of a young woman sentenced to death for bearing a child out of wedlock. In another example two years ago, he was moved to write a guest column for the Tennessean newspaper in Nashville on the special responsibility those in the world of sports have to work for the equal treatment of women, including to work against domestic violence. I was reminded of Wallace’s interest in this subject in light of the Ray Rice controversy. Here is some of what Perry Wallace had to say on the subject in his Sept. 11, 2012 column, words that seem especially relevant today:
“(This event) presented the proverbial golden opportunity for leaders in the sports world to make prominent statements about violence against women in particular and about justice and respect for women in general. Indeed, in this post-Penn State era of heightened concern about the potentially abusive nexus of power, privilege and sports, one might wisely speak more of a ‘mandate’ than an opportunity.
“There is still time, however, and given the high esteem in which society holds athletes, coaches and others from that community, such statements could have a significant, positive impact on men in a wide swath of society … At this potent historical juncture, sports leaders and institutions must use their extraordinary gravitas to add further speed and momentum to the progress that is already occurring. They have a critical decision to make: Which side of justice? Which side of history?”