Ross Barnett

Ross Barnett was the governor of Mississippi who publicly opposed the court-ordered admission of James Meredith to the University of Mississippi in 1962. His refusal made the desegregation dispute a direct test of federal authority: a court ruling could reshape Southern institutions only if the federal government was prepared to enforce it.

Identity and Political Position

After a long legal battle, federal courts ruled that Meredith, a young Black Air Force veteran, had to be admitted to the University of Mississippi, known as Ole Miss. Barnett rejected the order on television on September 13, announcing that state universities would close before they agreed to desegregate. His stance placed Mississippi’s state institutions against a federal court ruling and made his public opposition a focal point of the implementation struggle.

Resistance and Federal Intervention

Opposition to carrying out the ruling was organized by the Citizens’ Councils, whose first chapter had been formed in Indianola, Mississippi, in 1954 to fight desegregation in the South. Barnett’s televised rejection gave the state’s resistance an official voice. The federal government negotiated with him and President John F. Kennedy and Attorney General Robert Kennedy in Washington before deciding to intervene forcibly to ensure Meredith’s admission.

A date was set for U.S. marshals to bring Meredith to Oxford. On September 30, the day before he was due to appear, marshals entered the university campus and surrounded the main administration building. About 2,500 protesters gathered, and a riot broke out. The marshals used tear gas to disperse the crowd, then came under fire. By 10 p.m., federal troops had entered Oxford to restore order; the deployment eventually reached 20,000 troops and 11,000 National Guardsmen. In all, 300 people were arrested.

Outcome and Significance

Meredith remained on campus under the protection of U.S. marshals and 300 soldiers, and eventually graduated. The confrontation demonstrated that federal rulings could not secure desegregation through legal authority alone when local resistance controlled their implementation. Barnett’s declaration that Mississippi’s universities would close rather than desegregate was answered by federal force and Meredith’s continued presence on campus: the state’s refusal did not prevent the court-ordered admission.