Why was James Meredith so important?

Answer 1

James Meredith was an important figure during the civil rights movement. He was the first African American student to be admitted to the segregated college of the University of Mississippi.

Answer 2

Born in Albury, New South Wales,[1] Meredith was spotted playing football in Melbourne at the age of 16 by a Derby County scout.[3] He was offered a trial by the club and he joined their youth system on a two-year contract in 2004.[3] He progressed through the youth team and he signed a two-year professional contract with Derby on 19 July 2006.[1][3][4] He joined Conference National team Cambridge United on a one-month loan on 19 October 2006 and he made his debut in a 3-0 defeat to Oxford United.[5][6] He finished the loan with two appearances.[7] He had a trial with Conference team York City in January 2007, playing in a reserve team game against Rotherham United.[8] He joined League One team Chesterfield on a one-month loan on 19 February,[9] making one appearance as a left midfielder in a 2-0 defeat to Tranmere Rovers.[10] Following the expiry of the loan, Chesterfield opted against extending it.[11] Meredith joined League of Ireland Premier Division side Sligo Rovers on a contract until the end of the 2007 season on 31 July 2007.[12] He made his debut in a 2-0 defeat at Galway United on 24 August and he finished his time at the club with four appearances.[13][14]

Meredith signed for League Two team Shrewsbury Town on a one-and-a-half year contract on 14 January 2008 after training with the club,[15] which included a clause that after making five appearances the contract could be renegotiated.[16] He made his debut on 23 February in the 2-1 home defeat to Hereford United,[17] finishing the 2007-08 season with three appearances,[18] with his final game coming against Rochdale on the last day of the season.[19] He was told that he did not figure in new manager Paul Simpson's immediate plans in July 2008, being left behind as the club travelled to Spain on a pre-season training camp.[20]

Meredith joined Conference North team AFC Telford United on a one-month loan on 16 October,[21] saying "I don't see it as a step down but as a step up, because I've become stagnant at Shrewsbury".[22] Meredith signed a further one month extension with Telford in November and he scored the only goal in a 1-0 victory over Gateshead.[23] The loan was again extended for a further month in December, keeping him at the club until early January 2009.[23] Telford were looking to extend his loan for the remainder of the 2008-09 season,[24] but a contractual hitch held this up.[25] He eventually extended the loan on 8 January.[26] Meredith played for Telford in both legs of the semi-final defeat to York City in the FA Trophy.[27][28] He was handed a red card against Barrow in the semi-final of the Conference League Cup in March, which meant he would miss the Final because of a two-match suspension.[29][30] He was substituted after breaking his nose in a 3-0 victory over Burscough in April.[31] He played for Telford in the Conference North play-off Final on 8 May, which was lost 1-0 to Gateshead, meaning the team missed out on promotion to the Conference.[32] He finished the season with 45 appearances and one goal for Telford.[33]

Answer 3

He was significant because he was the first African American to be allowed to study at the University of Mississippi.