Are there lessons from the integration of Ole Miss for American higher education today?
Historians should be modest about drawing lessons from the past, but the stories of Ole Miss, race, and James Meredith may suggest several points. The problems of race were and remain deep, pervasive, and complex within higher education, just as in the larger society. The legacies of the past do indeed persist and cannot be ignored or avoided, and no simple solutions exist. Universities should recognize the inherent dangers when they interact with volatile political questions. Costly collisions can result as frequently as satisfactory solutions. Institutions of higher learning should protect their independence from meddling politicians. Academic freedom cannot be compromised without imperiling an institution. Q: What was it like doing research about the history of the university where you teach, especially given the period you were exploring? A: Though the history told in The Price of Defiance was not always pleasant or flattering for the institution, nobody at the university ever trie
