Radio and television report on situation at the University of Mississippi, 30 September 1962
This file contains materials collected by the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, concerning President Kennedy's radio and television address to the nation regarding desegregation and racially motivated violence at the University of Mississippi. In...
Images (37)
Document
| id |
id
193912
|
|---|---|
| contentType |
contentType
document
|
| source |
source
import
|
| identifierLocal |
identifierLocal
JFKPOF-040-028
|
Source image fields (6)
Extracted text
OCR Page 1 of 37TCS - Draft #1
Good evening, ay fellow citizens:
9/30/62
The Firth Circuit Court of Appesis, sitting in Neur Orleans, has
unde clear the fact that the enforcement of its orders in the ease of
Meredith VS. Fair is now the obligation of the United States Government;
and this Government intends to nurmu that obligation.
For our nation is founded on the principle that observance of
the lav is the eternal safeguard of liberty -- and defiance of the lew is
the surent path to tyranny. The law which ve obey includes the final
rulings of our eourts as vell as the enactments of our legislative bodies.
Eiven among lav-abiding men, few lavs are universally loved - but they are
all uniforaly respected and not resisted.
Americans are free, in short, to disagree - but not to disobey.
For in a government of lavs, and not of men, no man - howevex prominent or
powerful and no mob - hovever ugly or armed -- is entitled to defy a
court of lav. If this country should ever reach the point vhere any man or
group of nen, by force or threat of force, could long defy the ecomands of
our courts and Constitution, then no lew would stand free from doubt, no
judge vould be sure of his writ and no citizen would be safe from his
neighbors.
For more than 20 months, Jumes Meredith - a veteran of 9 years
service in the United States Air Force - has been trying to euroll in the
University of his home state of Mississippi. For more than 20 months he
has been subjected to every conceivable kind of delay, hazassment and denial.
The Courta of the United States -- all the way up to the Suppene Court -
have repentedly found that Mr. Meredith was being denied this opportunity
Terms
Relations
belongs_to
created_by