New Vanderbilt center to focus on social activism, race and gender in sports

Vanderbilt will create a new academic center to study social activism in sports and “explore the intersection of sports, race, gender and culture in society,” according to a university release.

The establishment of The Center for Sports and Society was announced by Vanderbilt Chancellor Nicholas Zeppos during a private event last Wednesday.

The event was part of Vanderbilt’s commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the integration of Southeastern Conference athletics, including Commodores basketball players Perry Wallace and Godfrey Dillard.

Vanderbilt spokesman Princine Lewis said it will be funded by a mix of philanthropy and university investment, and further plans will be developed this spring.

Vanderbilt’s release highlighted activism as an initial emphasis of the center, though it did not specify the type. “(The Center for Sports and Society) is intended to serve as a catalyst and a resource to make a more just and fair society, using sports as a vehicle for change,” the release said.

Commodores show social activism

Current Vanderbilt athletes have made headlines over the past couple of years because of their stands on social issues.

Vanderbilt senior linebacker Oren Burks was featured on the cover of NCAA Champions magazine last summer because of his standout play and social activism.

At SEC Football Media Days in 2016, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey pointed reporters directly to Burks as a student-athlete spokesman to address issues like police brutality in the heat of the Black Lives Matter movement.

More: Vanderbilt's Oren Burks embraces questions on race, police

Burks was the co-founder of the campus organization REVAMP (Revitalizing and Empowering Vanderbilt’s African-American Population) and president of Vanderbilt's Student-Athlete Advisory Council.

Last season, Burks told The Tennessean that athletes kneeling during the national anthem was “not a protest against the national anthem. It's a protest against racial injustice, police brutality and other issues like that.”

More: Vanderbilt's Oren Burks: 'People are missing the issue' on protests during anthem

Vanderbilt football players did not have the option to kneel during the anthem because they never exit the locker room until after the playing of the anthem. However, some Commodores cheerleaders knelt during a Vanderbilt football game versus Western Kentucky last season.

About half of the Vanderbilt women’s basketball players knelt during the national anthem before an exhibition game in October. The team then held an open forum where players and fans discussed and debated the reason for the protest.

Women's basketball players also locked arms with veterans and active duty personnel from the 101st Airborne during the anthem before their regular-season opener versus MTSU in November.

More: Vanderbilt women's basketball players kneel during national anthem

And at SEC Basketball Media Days in October, Vanderbilt's Stephanie White was among numerous women's basketball coaches who used their platform to criticize President Donald Trump for initially not inviting the South Carolina women's national title team to the White House.

South Carolina was later invited by the White House, but it did not attend because of scheduling conflicts, according to The Post and Courier.

More: White House snub of South Carolina women's basketball draws strong reaction

Wallace's feat led to center

Announcement of the new center comes on the heels of the recent release of the documentary film “Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace.”

More: 'Triumph' a fitting title for the big-screen story of Perry Wallace

Wallace, the first African-American to play varsity basketball in the SEC during the 1967-68 season, died on Dec. 1, 2017, after a battle with cancer.

“At Vanderbilt, we’ve come a long way in nurturing our increasingly diverse and vibrant community,” Zeppos said in the release. “But like our nation, we still have a long way to go. Universities have a critical role and mandate to study, to chronicle, and to shine a light on the great issues of our day.

“Given our history, Vanderbilt is uniquely positioned to be a convener for important conversations and study around the difficult issues at the intersection of sports and society.”

Reach Adam Sparks at asparks@tennessean.com and on Twitter @AdamSparks.