The Football Tackle That Mysteriously Killed Jack Trice

photo of the jack trice stadium at capacity during the night time
Via Wikimedia Commons
Briona Lamback
October 2, 2022

Jack Trice was new to the varsity football team at Iowa State. He was chasing his dreams, but something much darker was chasing him.

Trice was carrying everything on his back: his family and his people. 

It was time for kickoff. He wore very thin padding and only a leather cap on his head when it happened..

Trice was charged and trampled by the opposing team. He died two days later.

Was this a part of the game, or could it have been a hatred-fueled attack during a time when no one wanted to play on the same field as a Black man? After all, Black students couldn't live on campus.`

Merl Ross, former Iowa State business manager, said that opposing players wanted Trice out of the game because he was [B]lack."They wanted to get him out of there. And that's what they did."

Historical accounts are inconclusive, but one thing is for sure.

Regardless of what happened, white supremacy loomed around, making life hard for Trice–a young Black person just trying to find his way. Today, hatred for our people manifests in terrible ways that kill us. We should never stop fighting white supremacy–our lives depend on it.

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