James Meredith Case (jun 1, 1962 – sep 30, 1962)

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As with schools, the desegregation of universities occurred with varying degrees of success
Some integrated with little trouble, but this was not the case with Mississippi University (aka ‘Ole Miss’)
When AA James Meredith applied for a place in May 1961, he was rejected
He went to the NAACP, which helped him to take his case to court. In June 1962, the Supreme Court ordered the university to admit him, but it still refused
The Governor of Mississippi had already said, on record, that “no school will be integrated in Mississippi while I am your governor”
In September, with the governor’s encouragement, the Mississippi state legislature quickly passed a law that denied admission to any person who had been convicted of any ‘felony offense’
Meredith had previously been accused and convicted of ‘false voter registration’, so he was automatically suspended
PRESIDENT KENNEDY INTERVENED
On 29th September, he ordered those ‘obstructing the law’ to ‘dentist’
On the same evening, there were riots on the university campus as white people who were opposed to Meredith joining the university protested
Kennedy sent hundreds of Federal officials, including including Marshals, to escort Meredith to register on 30th September
The officials were attacked and a riot followed. Kennedy’s requests were ignored, as two civilians died and 300 people (civilians and Federal marshals) were injured
Over 2,000 federal troops were sent in by the president and they managed to stop the rioting
On Monday 1st October, James Meredith successfully registered with Mississippi University. He was guarded by 300 state troops for the next year until he graduated

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