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Brown vs. Board of Education
"Separate but equal" the segregation of white and black students is unconstitutional. -
Brown vs. Board of Education II
Ordering school districts to desegregate schools immediately. -
Clyde Kennard's first attempt to apply to Mississippi Southern College
He promoted a campaign by the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission to discredit him. Resulting in his arrest and conviction on false charges of possession of liquor. He was sentenced to seven years at Parchman Penitentiary, where he was denied proper care for serious health conditions that eventually led to his death. -
Tougaloo Nine
Nine students from Tougaloo College are arrested for attempting to desegregate the “white only” public library. -
School Walk Out
Burgland High School students are jailed in McComb for leading a walkout of the school in protest of the expulsion of fellow students for civil rights activism. -
Education Reform Act
Provided for compulsory education, tightened teacher certification, reorganized the State Department of Education, and provided for sales and income tax financing for schools. The drop-out rate results in some 50% of Mississippi children failing to graduate from high school. -
James Meredith Enrolls into the University of Mississippi
Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black orders James Meredith admittance to the University of Mississippi, called “Ole Miss.” Despite Gov. Ross Barnett’s attempts to prevent it, Meredith enrolls. A riot ensues on the UM campus, led by a white mob protesting the university’s integration. French photographer Paul Guihard and Oxford resident Ray Gunter are killed during the riot. -
The Civil Rights Act
This outlawed racial discrimination and segregation in employment, schools, and public places. -
Freedom of Choice Plan
State attempts to avoid integration of schools. Parents could select the school their children would attend. Black parents who attempted to enroll their children in the white schools suffered various economic and physical punishments. -
Alexander vs. Holmes County Board of Education
Private white academies are found across the state in response to the integration of the public schools. The flight of white students from the public schools results in the transfer of public assets to the private schools, further depleting resources available for public education. -
Underfunded schools
The public schools, chronically underfunded as a result of the dual school system, continue to be underfunded as they increasingly became primarily for black students and poor white students in some parts of the state. -
Tracked Students
2/3 of Mississippi school children are “tracked,” and they are not taught at the same level as the other children. -
Lowest Funded Schools
Mississippi public schools were still the lowest funded schools in the country.
