Ole Miss riot of 1962
Encyclopedia
James Meredith
James H. Meredith is an American civil rights movement figure, a writer, and a political adviser. In 1962, he was the first African American student admitted to the segregated University of Mississippi, an event that was a flashpoint in the American civil rights movement. Motivated by President...
at the University of Mississippi
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
(known affectionately as Ole Miss) at Oxford, Mississippi
Oxford, Mississippi
Oxford is a city in, and the county seat of, Lafayette County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1835, it was named after the British university city of Oxford in hopes of having the state university located there, which it did successfully attract....
.
On October 1, 1962, James H. Meredith became the first black student at the University of Mississippi
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
, after being barred from entering on September 20 and several other occasions in the following days. His enrollment, publicly opposed by segregationist Governor Ross Barnett, sparked riots on the Oxford campus, which required the U.S. Marshals
United States Marshals Service
The United States Marshals Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice . The office of U.S. Marshal is the oldest federal law enforcement office in the United States; it was created by the Judiciary Act of 1789...
. Later on (federal) U.S. Army military police from the 503rd Military Police Battalion were sent by President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
. Troops from U.S. Border Patrol and Mississippi National Guard were called in, as well. The involvement of federal forces was opposed for a long time by the President and Attorney General Robert Kennedy. Robert Kennedy had hoped that legal means, along with the escort of U.S. Marshals would be enough to force the Governor to comply. He also was very concerned there might be a "mini-civil war" between the (federal) U.S. Army troops and armed protesters. They reluctantly decided to involve federal forces after the protests turned violent.
The riots led to a violent clash which left two people dead - French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
journalist Paul Guihard
Paul Guihard
Paul Guihard, was a French journalist covering the Civil Rights Movement in the United States in the 1960s. He was murdered in rioting at the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford after James Meredith attempted to enroll at the all-white school. He was shot in the back at almost...
, on assignment for the London Daily Sketch, who was found behind the Lyceum building with a gunshot wound to the back; the second victim was 23-year-old Ray Gunter, a white jukebox repairman who came by out of curiosity. Gunter was found with a bullet wound in his forehead. Both deaths indicated execution-style killings. Barnett was fined $10,000 and sentenced to jail for contempt
Contempt of court
Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...
, but the charges were later dismissed by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
sang about the incident in his song "Oxford Town
Oxford Town
"Oxford Town" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan in 1962. It was recorded in Columbia's Studio A on 6 December 1962 for his second album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan....
". Meredith's actions are regarded as a pivotal moment in the history of civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
in the United States. He graduated on August 18, 1963 with a degree in political science.