Analysis Of James Meredith Annihilating The Walls Of Segregation

1049 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Conservative movement 1960s major events

James Meredith Annihilating the Walls of Segregation The early 1960s, a time that was on the brink of revolutionizing the United States, as Americans thought they knew it. This was a time of great inequality and segregation amongst White-Americans and African-Americans. The fight for equality and rights for Americans was at the height. One university, the University Mississippi also known as Ole Miss, strong rooted in the traditional heritage of the “Old South” the University was very strict they have never admitted an African American student until 1962, James Meredith. James Meredith’s admission to the University of Mississippi served as a catalyst not only for himself in life, but for the African American community and furthering prosperity …show more content…

Even with the Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Broad that segregation by race was in fact unconstitutional. Going against the segregation laws of the state of Mississippi and the denial of Governor Ross Barnett. James Meredith wrote a letter to the United States Justice Department asking for the power and influence of the federal government they should use their positions to insure the full rights of citizenship for the people (Doc. 1). Defying the odds and overcoming the adversity to becoming a student at the University. The troubles would only get worse from here in Oxford, Mississippi. Following his enrollment, a huge outrage of the student body and state officials came forth immediately. A few weeks before the arrival of James Meredith, Governor Ross Barnett made a declaration to the people of Mississippi and the University. In this declaration he stated “Paid propagandists are continually hammering away at us in the hope that they can succeed in bringing about a division among us.” Barnett is claiming that the government’s efforts to integrate races in the schools and other areas, were only going to divide the country even more, and ruin the founding constitution of the country. Barnett goes on to say “I have made my position in this matter crystal clear. I have said in every county in Mississippi that no school in …show more content…

Shortly after his arrival on the campus, being escorted by the U.S. Marshals and the National Guard for his safety. A riot breaks out on the campus in front of the Lyceum building. A mob mixed with Mississippi residents, students and other white supremacy activist break out into was with the National Guardsman and other University officials. James Meredith is unharmed and is kept hidden in a dormitory on campus. In October following the riot of Meredith’s arrival, a group of students who resented James Meredith called “The Rebel Underground” (Doc. 3). This was a private memo calling for students with the same feelings toward the situation at hand. The issue stated “We will never accept integration at this or any other institution. We propose to resist by every means from now on.” They also gave a warning the National Guard and Government forces of integration “We have only begun to fight” (Doc. 3). This went to show the ongoing hate and racism was much significant not just in the south but on the campus at the University of

Show More
Related

  • African Americans in McMillen’s Dark Journey: Black Mississippians in the Age of Jim Crow

    1486 Words  | 3 Pages

    McMillen begins by tracing the roots of segregation in Mississippi beginning with common law and later evolving into state sponsored apartheid with the Plessey v. Ferguson decision and the new state constitution of 1890. The need for separation between the races arose out of feelings of “negrophobia” that overcame the white citizens of the South during the period of Jim Crow. Negrophobia was an overwhelming fear by white males in the South that if the races were in close proximity of each other the savage black men would insult the heavenly virtues of Southern white women. As a result black boys in Mississippi learned at an early age that even smiling at a white woman could prove dangerous. Although segregation was vehemently opposed by Black leaders when it was first instituted, by the 1890’s leaders such as Booker T. Washington began to emphasize self-help over social equality. The fact that Mississippi’s institutions were segregated lead to them being inherently unequal, and without a...

    Read More

  • Ole Miss vs University of Mississippi

    1028 Words  | 3 Pages

    The University of Mississippi is an institution of higher learning just as any of the 629 public 4- year universities in the United States. Due to the location of the university, the school faces criticism and publicity for its unconscious efforts and decisions to uphold its southern heritage. Though there were attempts to modernize the school, “Ole Miss” still holds the image of the Old South. The decisions and actions of supporters of the school’s traditions are weighing heavily on the universities inability to progress. There is a difference in the meanings of certain symbols based on a person’s understanding, genetic make-up, cultural background and race. Though the university is upholding its traditional ways of learning and functioning, change is somewhat required by society. “. The University of Mississippi does uphold a traditional way of life within the name, “Ole Miss”, and other symbols of racial segregation, confederacy and white superiority. The University of Mississippi will be seen as inferior to other universities because of its faithfulness to “Ole Miss” and upholding southern traditions. The traditions of the University should be dealt away with or altered, if not, the traditions of the University will continuously hold an “open wound”. In order to uphold the South’s “southern identity”, the use of symbol as traditions at the University of Mississippi preserve a way of life that is interchangeable with white identity.

    Read More

  • Integration of University of Mississippi

    1470 Words  | 3 Pages

    Integration and the University of Mississippi. Cartoon. New York Times [New York] 30 Sept. 1962: 1.

    Read More

  • Segregation and Disenfranchisement of African Americans from 1875-1990

    516 Words  | 2 Pages

    During the Reconstruction Period, many Southern states passed laws that productively disenfranchised African Americans. The Civil Rights Acts of 1875 should have protected blacks against discrimination in public places when Reconstruction ended in 1877. Segregation lived throughout the South. The Democrats wanted to stop the blacks from voting so they could take away all the rights blacks had achieved. African Americans were so furious because all of their hard work was crumbling right before their eyes. There were many laws passed to keep African Americans separated from the public such as the Jim Crow Laws. They also imposed a poll tax, a literacy test, proof of residency, and other requirements for voting. They knew this would have a huge effect on African Americans because they could not afford to pay the poll tax, and it was illegal to teach African Americans so most of them were illiterate. Everyone started to see what the lawmakers were doing and how far they were willing to go to disfranchise black voters. Many Northern legislatures were enraged with how the South was taking ...

    Read More

  • Essay On Boston Busing

    561 Words  | 2 Pages

    The decision to integrate Boston schools in the 1970’s created negative race relations and later fueled a political debate that would change schools across the country. Most desegregation efforts in the United States began with the case of Oliver Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka in 1954. The case ruled that segregation on the basis of race was prohibited because it violated citizen’s rights under the Constitution. On June 21, 1974 in the case of Morgan vs. Hennigan, Judge Garret made a ruling that accused the Boston School Committee of engaging in racial segregation. “This ruling later would serve to fuel one of the prominent controversies embedded in our nation’s ongoing struggle for racial desegregation.” The busing policy created extreme acts of violence, invaded personal freedoms, hindered students’ education and

    Read More

  • The Impact of Slavery and Segregation in Today's Society

    1383 Words  | 3 Pages

    Slavery and Segregation are two components that have made a major impact on today’s society. Slavery is morally wrong, but many people still practiced it. Almost half of the nation believed it was wrong, but they were unwilling to do anything about it. The other half of the nation depended on slavery for producing goods, and this created a stalemate in the country. Freedom of slaves created segregation everywhere, and many black children could not attend school to be educated. Black children were not allowed to go to school with white children, leaving many black kids unable to read, write, and learn other subjects. Uncle Tom’s Cabin was a story that took place in the southern half of the United States; it portrays the struggles that African-Americans have to go through. The story shows the evils of slavery, and how blacks get mistreated for absolutely no reason. The Bouquet was a story that took place in an inner city in the South. The story depicts how prejudice white people were toward African-Americans in segregated parts of the nation. At first, the white teacher believes that it is bad for her to teach black kids, but it the end she realizes how genuine and caring they are and changes her feelings toward them. Uncle Tom’s Cabin and The Bouquet introduce the harsh realities of slavery and segregation as well as how African-Americans show love for one another through good times and the suffering.

    Read More

  • Racial Segregation And Social Equality In The 20th Century

    1021 Words  | 3 Pages

    Around 1900 the situation for blacks was dire. They suffered extreme discrimination and were frequently the victims of violence in the South. Blacks could not vote and their career opportunities remained limited. White society excluded blacks from equal participation in many areas of public life; they wanted to keep blacks in a position of economic, political, social and cultural subservience.

    Read More

  • Segregation and Its Impact on Civil Rights Movement

    715 Words  | 2 Pages

    Have you ever heard about segregation? What affects it had in our Civil Rights Movement? Segregation had it’s biggest impact in the separation of the American people by color and race. Many children had to go to different school because of their color, this was the beginning of the Jim Crow Laws which led to Plessy V. Ferguson and ending with Brown V. Board of education. Although the decision did not succeed in fully desegregating public education in the United States, it put the Constitution on the side of racial equality and galvanized the nascent civil rights movement into a full revolution.

    Read More

  • Segregation History

    1584 Words  | 4 Pages

    United States school systems have has a history of segregation. This segregation began with the passing of Jim Crow laws in the south in the late 1800’s. The influence of this practice was at first the slave culture of the southern states, and later was manifest as residential segregation and school choice programs. There were also many Supreme Court rulings which failed to overturn implement segregation which allowed for the practice to continue to flourish. Although we have seen social improvements in our society in the past 50 years we can still see that many citizens of the United States are still placed at a disadvantage due to their class and race. In this paper we will examine the history of segregation practices and

    Read More

  • Persisting Segregation: America's Unresolved Issue

    873 Words  | 2 Pages

    Segregation began in 1896, after slavery was abolished and ended in 1964 with the Civil Rights Act all throughout America, but did it really end the racial segregation? or changed how one viewed African Americans. Although the law ended Segregation, we still see segregation in different areas in our world as well as in housing, schools, employment, and even economic status in 2016. “America Has a Big Race Problem”, “How policy built segregation in Baltimore”, and lastly my personal experience will provide evidence on how segregation still exist in 2016, as well as what started it.

    Read More

  • The American Civil Rights Movement

    1533 Words  | 4 Pages

    James Meredith was a Civil Rights Activist, writer, political adviser, and the first African American admitted to the University of Mississippi. Originally, Meredith's admission to the University of Mississippi was rescinded on the basis of his race: the University of Mississippi—at that time—was an all white institution. Because all public educational institution were ordered to desegregate, Meredith brought upon a lawsuit. The district court, predictably, ruled against him, but his case made its way to the Supreme Court, which ruled in his favor. James Meredith arrived at the university on September 20, 1962, but he could not enter the school as all of the entrances were blocked off. Violent riots erupted upon his arrival and the military was dispatched for his protection. On October 1, 1962, Jame...

    Read More

  • The Role of the Supreme Court in the Civil Rights Movement

    1964 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Supreme Court is perhaps most well known for the Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954. By declaring that segregation in schools was unconstitutional, Kevern Verney says a ‘direct reversal of the Plessy … ruling’1 58 years earlier was affected. It was Plessy which gave southern states the authority to continue persecuting African-Americans for the next sixty years. The first positive aspect of Brown was was the actual integration of white and black students in schools. Unfortunately, this was not carried out to a suitable degree, with many local authorities feeling no obligation to change the status quo. The Supreme Court did issue a second ruling, the so called Brown 2, in 1955. This forwarded the idea that integration should proceed 'with all deliberate speed', but James T. Patterson tells us even by 1964 ‘only an estimated 1.2% of black children ... attended public schools with white children’2. This demonstrates that, although the Supreme Court was working for Civil Rights, it was still unable to force change. Rathbone agrees, saying the Supreme Court ‘did not do enough to ensure compliance’3. However, Patterson goes on to say that ‘the case did have some impact’4. He explains how the ruling, although often ignored, acted ‘relatively quickly in most of the boarder s...

    Read More

  • Segregation In The United States Essay

    1262 Words  | 3 Pages

    Segregation in the United States refers to the unequal treatment of people who come from different races. US is a country that has people of all races. However, the minority races have been ignored and segregated over time. This paper evaluates segregation in US and tells whether the situation has since changed. The paper also addresses the causes of the racial segregation and how it can be eliminated.

    Read More

  • Dr. King’s Argument Against Segregation

    1382 Words  | 3 Pages

    The injustice of segregation laws is leading to a violent impact throughout the African American community, as they strive to have equal rights. In the essay, “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King Jr. describes many struggles the African American community is going through. Dr. King effectively uses rhetorical appeals to persuade the clergymen that segregation laws are unjust and must end.

    Read More

  • Essay On Segregation In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1005 Words  | 3 Pages

    Segregation is the exclusion of a certain racial, religious, or other categorized group from actively participating in aspects of society. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, was set during a time period where segregation was customary in society; it affected the way people portrayed certain ideas and how people regarded one another. In the southern United States at this time there was a clash amongst races that separated people. Whites in particular served a less complicated lifestyle than blacks, as blacks were considered to be of lesser importance. The struggles endured by those dealing with segregation were overlooked by the discriminative inhabitants of Maycomb who were brought up in a society where their unjust actions were accepted. Engrained in their minds was an inequality that divided races, which lead to the inability to combine races into an integrated society.

    Read More

More about Analysis Of James Meredith Annihilating The Walls Of Segregation

Open Document