Sept. 30, 1962 - Governor Ross R. Barnett, declaring that his state had been “physically overpowered” by the Federal Government, gave up his fight tonight to keep a Negro out of the University of Mississippi. In a statement issued in Jackson, Miss., the Governor announced that Mississippi would keep up a struggle in the courts against the admission of James H. Meredith, who was placed in residence at the university tonight under escort of Federal marshals. But with the Mississippi National Guard mobilized and Federal troops entering the state to enforce the Federal court’s order for Mr. Meredith’s admission, Governor Barnett declared that Mississippians “must at all odds preserve the peace and avoid bloodshed.” Crowds (pictured) that had been rallied earlier by the White Citizens Council in Jackson to support the Governor in his fight against racial desegregation heard broadcasts of the Governor’s statement on portable transistor radios. They were silent. One Citizens Council member, who declined to give his name, commented: “As long as the marshals are here, n*****s can go to the school. But as soon as the marshals go, you know that n****r is going out.”
