James Meredith

James Meredith is now a civil rights activist and currently residing in Jackson, Mississipi with his second wife.

James Meredith (1933-    ) James Meredith was born on June 25,1933 in Kosciusko, Mississippi. Meredith filed a complaint with the district court, saying that he had been denied of admission because of his color.  He was the first African-American student to attend the University of Mississippi and graduate from there.  He got the help to attend this school by Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy who called in the federal protection to help Meredith register for his classes and also with the assistance of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. After numerous legal battles and appeals, he won the right to attend the University when the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision on Sept. 10, 1962. He graduated in August of 1963 and went on to earn a law degree from Columbia University in 1968. Other Universities that Meredith attended were Columbia Law School, University of Ibadan, Columbia University, and Jackson State University. He initiated a civil-rights march called 'March Against Fear' which began in Tennessee and ended in Mississippi in summer of 1966. Meredith was shot by a sniper but was hospitalized and lived right in time for his march. He wrote a book on 'Three Years in Mississippi' He is an author of 25 publications, including Mississippi: A Volume of Eleven Books, which was published in 1995. In 1997, he presented his papers to the University of Mississippi where they are housed at the J.D. Williams Library. Meredith showed courage in many of his stand-alone efforts and has been accorded significant status in American history.

James Meredith was escorted by U.S Marshalls due to riots that broke out because of his enrollment.