Photo by Chris Meyer Meredith

During a June 1 lecture offered by the School of Education, James Meredith not only spoke about his role in the civil rights movement, he also shared details about the role the state of Indiana has played in shaping his life.

"Indiana is a very significant state to America, and particularly significant to me," said the 71-year-old lecturer, adding that he had spent almost the entire decade of the 1950s in Peru, Indiana, as an enlisted serviceman stationed at Grissom Air Force Base.

Meredith, however, believes his association with Indiana is most significant in that his memoir was published by the IU Press in 1966. The book, Three Years in Mississippi (1966), is Meredith's personal account in becoming the first African American to be admitted to the University of Mississippi.

According to Meredith, he turned down multiple publishing deals from numerous publishing houses in order to write his own book. Many of the book deals included ghost writers and movie scripts, "but Indiana University was the only publisher that agreed to publish what James Meredith wrote," he said. The opportunity to have his story told in his own words persuaded Meredith to sign a publishing contract with IU Press.

During the lecture--based largely on a speech Meredith said he began writing nearly 50 years ago--Meredith shared his thoughts on serving in the military during its early days of desegregation and briefly answered questions from attendees, many of whom were School of Education students and faculty from various disciplines. Meredith's lecture did not cover his involvement in the civil rights movement, although his visit to IU was orchestrated by visiting professor Alvin Chambliss Jr., a civil rights leader who is affiliated with the School of Education and the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies.

According to a pre-lecture press release, Meredith enrolled at the University of Mississippi in 1962 after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that he could not be denied admission based on his skin color. Federal troops were called to enforce the court's ruling and two people were killed in ensuing violence. Meredith was guarded during his entire enrollment at the university. After graduating in 1963 (Meredith had previously studied at a historically black university), he earned a law degree from Columbia University. Additionally, Meredith has run for congress and has served in a staff position in the office of North Carolina Sen. Jesse Helms.

Editor's note: IU Bloomington visiting professor Alvin Chambliss Jr.--organizer for James Meredith's visit and lecture--is offering a second summer session class entitled "Black Community, Law, and Social Change." The class includes sessions conducted by guest lecturers Thomas "TNT" Todd, a Chicago attorney; George Taliaferro, former IU football player; Clarence Gilliam, NAACP emeritus, Monroe County/Bloomington; and Guy Loftman, activist attorney.