BLACK HISTORY MONTH: James Meredith to speak at Calhoun event

Published 6:00 am Monday, February 5, 2018

Calhoun Community College has announced its calendar of events planned throughout the month of February in celebration of Black History Month.

All events are sponsored by the college’s Black Student Alliance and are free and open to the public.

Among the highlights of the month will be a presentation Feb. 12 by civil rights legend James Meredith, most notably known as the first African-American to attend the University of Mississippi in 1962.

Born in Kosciusko, Mississippi, Meredith was raised on a farm with his nine siblings. After high school, he spent nine years in the U.S. Air Force before enrolling in Jackson State College, a Historically Black College and University.

In 1961, he applied to the University of Mississippi and was denied admission after the registrar discovered his race. At that time, all public educational institutions had been ordered to desegregate following the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling, and Meredith filed a suit alleging discrimination. While the Mississippi state courts ruled against him, the case made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in Meredith’s favor.

Meredith graduated from the university in 1963 with a degree in political science, later detailing the account of his experience in 1966’s “Three Years in Mississippi.” After graduating from the University of Mississippi, Meredith went on to earn a master’s degree from the University of Ibadan in Nigeria and a law degree from Columbia University. In recent years, he has continued to be active in civil rights and education issues, particularly through his nonprofit organization, the Meredith Institute. In 2002, the University of Mississippi honored the 40th anniversary of Meredith’s admission with numerous events. A statue of him was installed on the campus in his honor.

The complete calendar of events at Calhoun is below:

Feb. 7

11 a.m.

African-American Film Festival

Huntsville Campus

Math, Science and CIS Building

Room 1323

Feb. 12

10 a.m.

James Meredith: A Civil Rights Legend on the Front Line of History

Huntsville Campus

Math, Science and CIS building

Feb. 14

11 a.m.

African-American

Film Festival

Huntsville Campus

Math, Science and CIS Building

Room 1323

Feb. 15

11 a.m.

Dr. Derrick Harriell — Poetry Reading and Book Signing

Huntsville Campus

Math, Science and CIS building

Feb. 21

11 a.m.

African-American Film Festival

Huntsville Campus

Math, Science and CIS Building

Room 1323

Feb. 23

6 p.m.

Annual Black History Month Gospel Fest

Huntsville Campus

Feb. 28

11 a.m.

African-American Film Festival

Huntsville Campus

Math, Science and CIS Building

Room 1323

For more information on any of the events listed on the calendar, contact Calhoun’s Public Relations Office at 256-306-2561.