Many today only know Ole Miss for football. Often memories are short where sports are concerned, especially the juggernaut that is American college football in the south. But there is no denying the violent struggle that took place to integrate the University of Mississippi in 1962. While “in 2022, student-athletes of color [made] up approximately 70% of Ole Miss’ football roster” (Clarion Ledger, 9/28/2022), it was a completely different story in 1962.
The University of Mississippi’s refusal to allow James Meredith to register led to a showdown between state and federal authorities. When the Supreme Court ordered his admission to the university, the governor of the state sought to block it, forcing President John F. Kennedy to eventually dispatch the army to the campus to secure his admission. A riot by whites injured 300 persons and killed two. The events surrounding the University of Mississippi’s segregationist stance along with Meredith’s “walk against fear” in 1966 were pivotal events in the Civil Rights Movement.
This collection contains extensive FBI documentation on Meredith’s battle to enroll at The University of Mississippi and white political and social backlash, including his correspondence with the NAACP and positive and negative letters he received from around the world during his ordeal.
Image attribution:
By /\ \/\/ /\ from USA – James Meredith in the Winter Library (2010)
CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=45762000