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OXFORD, Miss.--Embattled U.S. Attorney Gen. Eric Holder will be in Mississippi Thursday to speak at Ole Miss. The topic- "50 Years of Integration — 1962-2012: A Reflection on Civil Rights in America."
That’ll be at 7 p.m. at the Gertrude C. Ford Center for the Performing Arts, 351 University Ave., Oxford.
This year marks 50 years since James Meredith became the first African-American to enroll at the University of Mississippi. He did so with the assistance of federal troops and despite the vocal resistance of then Mississippi Gov. Ross Barnett, a staunch segregationist.
The Kosciusko native graduated with a political science degree in 1963. It was unclear whether he would attend any of the events planned to honor the anniversary. He said in 2002, during the 40th anniversary celebration:
"It was an embarrassment for me to be there, and for somebody to celebrate it, oh my God. I want to go down in history, and have a bunch of things named after me, but believe me that ain't it (reprinted from an AP article).”
Meredith was last in the news when he walked for recognition for educational issues earlier this year.
Holder is the current Attorney General, in the news in the past year for his involvement in the “Fast and Furious” scandal. He is considered in contempt of Congress for his refusal to turn over information on the events surrounding the murder of a U.S. Border Patrol agent after guns came into the hands of Mexican drug cartel gang members.
He is expected to lead discussions on civil rights and human trafficking.
