‘TOUGHER THAN ANYBODY’

Civil Rights Giant James Meredith Suffers Fall at 90th Birthday Party

Meredith, the first Black student to enroll at the University of Mississippi following a federal court order, was not hurt, his family said.

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.”