Civil rights campaigner James Meredith, the first Black student to enroll at the University of Mississippi following a federal court order to desegregate the campus, suffered a fall at an event marking his 90th birthday Sunday—but emerged unharmed, his family told the Associated Press.
The incident occurred when Meredith went to lean on an unsteady lectern while speaking to a crowd gathered at the Mississippi state Capitol, toppling the portable podium and falling on top of it. He was quickly helped back into his wheelchair and sat for the rest of the event, later returning home to continue celebrating with family. “He’s enjoying his birthday cake now,” his wife, Judy Alsobrooks Meredith, told the AP. “He’s tougher than anybody I’ve ever known.
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Civil rights icon James Meredith, 90, falls at Mississippi event but has no visible injuriesCivil rights icon James Meredith fell outside the Mississippi Capitol at an event marking his 90th birthday. He suffered no visible injuries. Meredith tumbled forward onto a portable lectern Sunday as he stood to speak to some 200 people. Those around him scrambled to help him into a wheelchair. An ambulance crew checked Meredith afterward before he left with friends and family. A person close to the family said hours later that Meredith was doing better and resting at home. White mobs rioted in 1962 when Meredith enrolled as the first Black student at the University of Mississippi. In 1966, Meredith set out to promote Black voting rights and prove a Black man could walk through Mississippi without fear. A white man shot and wounded him on the second day.
Source: AP - 🏆 728. / 51 Read more »