WASHINGTON – Billed as “an evening of conversation about the intersection of race and sports,” Wednesday’s program at the National Museum of African American History and Culture was actually much more.
Convened by Vanderbilt University chancellor Dr. Nicholas Zeppos as part of the 50th anniversary of the integration of Vanderbilt Athletics and the Southeastern Conference, the event centered around a stunning documentary about the school’s first African-American varsity basketball player.
“Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace,” premiered last month at the university. A shorter preview was presented at the NMAAHC program along with a panel of academics and experts discussing sports, race and politics in today’s polarized society.
“Some strange bedfellows come together when we talk about race and sports,” Zeppos said in opening remarks. “We learn some uncomfortable truths about ourselves and others.”
Not only did Wallace make history at Vanderbilt as a player and outstanding student, but in December 1967 he became the first African-American scholarship athlete to play varsity basketball in the SEC. Wallace and another Black Vanderbilt player, Godfrey Dillard, are being honored through the film and forums focusing on race relations in sports. The two athletes experienced vicious threats and hateful incidents at Vanderbilt and at numerous other schools where they played throughout the South. Wallace, who later became an attorney, died Dec. 1, 2017 – just days before the anniversary celebration and premiere. He was 69.
“Perry Wallace changed Vanderbilt … he changed the SEC … and he changed the nation,” Zeppos said.
On the anniversary, Zeppos issued a statement to the university: “It was many years before their stories and this painful part of the university’s history was acknowledged. However, it is imperative that we look critically at our past to become the Vanderbilt we aspire to be – one in which all can feel welcomed, supported and included as they pursue a world-class education.”
