An American insurrection : the battle of Oxford, Mississippi, 1962 / William Doyle.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Doyle, William, 1957-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

University of Mississippi--History.

University of Mississippi.

Meredith, James.

College integration--Mississippi--Oxford--History.

College integration.

African Americans--Civil rights.

African Americans.

Civil rights--Mississippi--Oxford--History.

Civil rights.

History.

Mississippi--Oxford.

Physical Description:

viii, 383 pages, 8 unnumbered of plates : illustrations, portraits, map ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Doubleday, [2001]

Summary:

An American Insurrection is the true story of the worst constitutional crisis since the Civil War and of a major turning point in American history. It takes readers into the eye of the chaotic and ferocious white uprising that occurred when Air Force veteran James Meredith tried to become the first black student to register at the University of Mississippi, only to be physically blocked by radical segregationist Governor Ross Barnett, hundreds of state police, and thousands of student and civilian "volunteers" from across the South. The revolt climaxed in a fourteen-hour battle and the lightning invasion of the state by 30,000 combat troops ordered in by President John F. Kennedy.

Based on years of intensive research, including more than 500 interviews with witnesses and key players in the drama, recently unsealed FBI files, and on JFK's Oval Office and Cabinet Room tapes recorded during the crisis, An American Insurrection unearths the unsung heroes -- and more than a few villains -- of a dark and violent event that has remained buried in the historical shadows until now. It is the unforgettable account of a governor in rebellion, a president in crisis, soldiers on a perilous mission, a state sliding into civil war, and a battle that crushed forever the southern strategy of massive resistance. What Black Hawk Down was to the American mission in Somalia, An American Insurrection is destined to become to the epic struggle for civil rights.

Contents:

Prologue: The Past Is Never Dead 1

Chapter 1 Whom Shall I Fear? 5

Chapter 2 The Warrior 17

Chapter 3 The Incendiary Man 37

Chapter 4 We Shall Be Invincible 49

Chapter 5 Order of Battle 67

Chapter 6 In the Lord's Hands 95

Chapter 7 Though the Heavens Fall 118

Chapter 8 The Gates of Bedlam 131

Chapter 9 Demons Out of the Earth 150

Chapter 10 The Silent Pillar 167

Chapter 11 The Guns of Midnight 179

Chapter 12 History Will Not Forget You 198

Chapter 13 A New Civil War Has Begun 211

Chapter 14 A Wall of Fire 228

Chapter 15 After the Dawn 256

Chapter 16 The New Age 276

Epilogue: The Greatest Suppertime of All 295.

Notes:

Map on lining paper.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [363]-368) and index.

Local Notes:

Gift of Mr. & Mrs. Sheldon Hackney.

ISBN:

0385499698

OCLC:

46678281