Cleve McDowell

Cleve McDowell
Cleve McDowell
	McDowell on the campus of the University of Mississippi in 1963
Born	August 6, 1941; Drew, Mississippi, United States
Died	March 13, 1997 (aged 55); Drew, Mississippi, United States
Education	University of Mississippi School of Law (expelled)
Alma mater	Jackson State College; Texas Southern University (JD)
Occupation	Field secretary for the NAACP; Lawyer
Known for	First African American to enroll in the University of Mississippi School of Law

Cleve McDowell (August 6, 1941 – March 13, 1997) was an American civil rights activist and lawyer. He is most well-known for being the first African American to enroll in the University of Mississippi School of Law.

McDowell was born in 1941 in Drew, Mississippi, to an African American tenant farmer. He attended Jackson State College for his undergraduate studies and graduated in 1963. In June of that year, he enrolled in the University of Mississippi School of Law. While his application had initially been rejected, a court order from federal judge Sidney Carr Mize forced the university to accept him as their first African American student. He was also the second African American student to enroll in the university overall after fellow Jackson State alumnus James Meredith, who had enrolled the previous year. However, several months after enrolling, he was expelled from the university for carrying a handgun on campus.

Following his expulsion from the University of Mississippi, McDowell studied at Texas Southern University, where he earned his Juris Doctor. After this, he practiced law in Mississippi, serving as a public defender for about 30 years. Additionally, he served in several state and local political offices and was a field secretary for the NAACP. He was killed in Drew in 1997 by a client in a robbery.

Early life and education

Cleve McDowell was born on August 6, 1941, in Drew, Mississippi, United States.^[1] He was the sixth of ten children born to an African American tenant farmer and grew up in Drew, located in Sunflower County in the Mississippi Delta region of the state.^[2] He attended Drew Public Schools, where he was class president, leader of the debate team, and editor of the student newspaper.^[1] In high school, he played American football and basketball and was offered athletic scholarships from several historically black colleges and universities outside of the state.^[3] However, he instead chose to attend Jackson State College in Jackson, Mississippi, for his undergraduate studies, claiming that it was a better school than the ones he had received the offers from.^[3] He began his college career in 1960,^[4] majoring in history and political science.^[3] Additionally, he served as the editor for the college's student newspaper.^[5] In 1963,^[1] McDowell graduated from Jackson State with honors.^[4]^[6]

While at Jackson State, McDowell was a student assistant for civil rights activist Medgar Evers.^[1] Additionally, he took several classes with James Meredith,^[3] who, in October 1962, became the first African American to enroll in the University of Mississippi.^[4] Meredith's enrollment triggered severe rioting at the university's campus, resulting in two deaths.^[3]^[4]^[7]^[8] In response, United States President John F. Kennedy dispatched several thousand soldiers to restore order at the university and allow Meredith to safely attend the university.^[6]

University of Mississippi

Application and legal challenge

In late 1962, McDowell expressed interest in applying to the University of Mississippi to complete his undergraduate education.^[9] However, after talking to Meredith about this, he instead decided to apply for the University of Mississippi School of Law.^[9] McDowell sought legal aid from Constance Baker Motley, who would serve as his lawyer in subsequent litigation,^[4] and applied to the school in November 1962.^[9] He subsequently reapplied in February 1963 after the school had made changes to their application form.^[9] In a later interview with The New York Times, McDowell said that part of his desire to continue his education within the state had stemmed from some travels he had taken to large cities outside of Mississippi, such as Chicago, Memphis, and Omaha, which he spoke of negatively in comparison to Mississippi.^[3] Concerning the impact that Meredith had had on his decision to apply to the University of Mississippi, McDowell said that, while he probably would have applied regardless, Meredith's success in enrolling encouraged him.^[4]

In April 1963, the chancellor of the University of Mississippi ordered the law school to send any applications they had received from African Americans to the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning board of trustees for review.^[9] The following month, the board reviewed McDowell's application and voted unanimously to instruct the registrar of the university to "defer and withhold action" on the application.^[9] This was despite the fact that McDowell had been approved by the faculty of the law school for admission for the Summer 1963 semester.^[2] In response, lawyers for the NAACP requested a restraining order against the board of trustees in order to allow McDowell to enroll in the university,^[9] taking the case to the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.^[2]

On June 3, Judge Sidney Carr Mize heard oral arguments regarding McDowell's application in Biloxi, Mississippi.^[10] Charles Clark, speaking on behalf of the board of trustees, argued that the 1962 case Meredith v. Fair, which had resulted in Meredith's admission to the university, was not applicable to McDowell's application because it had not been a class action lawsuit.^[10] Clark also argued that McDowell's presence at the university would be harmful and criticized both McDowell and Meredith for engaging in a publicity stunt in attempting to gain admittance to the university.^[10] However, Mize rejected Clark's arguments and ordered that McDowell be enrolled in the law school.^[10] Speaking later of the ruling, Meredith stated that, while either the state or the court could have stalled and postponed McDowell's entrance into the university, both sides felt that having McDowell enroll during the Summer semester, when there were fewer students on campus, was preferrable to having him eventually enroll in a later semester.^[11]

Following the court ruling, Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett spoke to several high-profile segregationists, such as John C. McLaurin, about a response to the decision.^[10] There were rumors that the governor would shut down the law school via executive order, though this did not come to fruition out of fear that the state's remaining institutions of higher learning would lose accreditation.^[10] According to journalist Bill Minor, Barnett and Representative John Bell Williams had planned to lead a show of resistance in Oxford with the state's congressional delegation, though the plan fell apart when Senator John C. Stennis and others declined to participate.^[10] Ultimately, in a televised address given on June 5, Barnett, while maintaining his support for segregation, stated that he would not fight the federal government's decision.^[12]

Enrollment

McDowell registered for classes at the university on the afternoon of June 5, 1963.^[12] Soldiers and federal marshals were stationed around the campus, and United States Army planes flew overhead.^[12] In contrast to Meredith's initial enrollment at the university the previous year, McDowell's enrollment occurred without incident.^[13]^[12] Both McDowell and Meredith were assigned to share a room in Baxter Hall for the semester,^[2]^[13] with security provided by the Army and, later, the marshals.^[12] McDowell attended his first class on June 6, with two marshals following behind him and several more in the vicinity to ensure his safety.^[13]

On August 18, Meredith graduated,^[2] leaving McDowell as the only African American at the university.^[14] Following his graduation, the marshals, who had been present on the university since October 1962,^[15] left the university.^[16] According to reporter Claude Sitton of The New York Times, the United States Department of Justice had ordered the removal of the marshals after the university had pledged to protect McDowell.^[14] Publicly, McDowell stated that he was not afraid of being on campus, but in private conversation with the university's Episcopalian chaplain, Wofford Smith, he stated that he was scared.^[16] Additionally, McDowell had recently purchased Meredith's car, which was well-known to segregationists.^[17] In a later memoir, Meredith said that McDowell was scared because "the white girls just would not leave him alone".^[18] Per Meredith, "When he got into his car and left the campus they would follow him. Often the white boys would get behind and follow the girls, and McDowell was scared of what they might try to do to him."^[18] Additionally, journalist James L. Dickerson stated that McDowell was less afraid of students at the university and more concerned with violence from sources off campus, such as the [[Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission.^[19] McDowell reached out to both the local sheriff's department and the university to request permission to carry a gun on him for self-defense, but both rejected his request on the grounds that it went against the university's policies.^[2] Despite this, McDowell began carrying a Röhm Gesellschaft .22 caliber revolver on him.^[14]

Expulsion

On September 23, the third day of the Fall semester,^[16] McDowell had a meeting in Oxford with a United States attorney to request better protections for himself.^[21] Afterwards, McDowell arrived on the campus and, running late for his class, ran to Lamar Hall,^[21] which houses the law school.^[14] On the steps of the building, he dropped his sunglasses and while bending over to pick them up, the gun he had been carrying on him fell out of his pocket in front of some students.^[22] McDowell went to class, but after leaving, the sheriff for Lafayette County, Mississippi, was present to arrest him for unlawful possession of a firearm.^[22] The sheriff, Joe Ford, was also the leader of the Citizens' Council of Oxford and had been tipped off earlier to McDowell's firearm,^[16] which McDowell surrendered to the sheriff.^[14]

McDowell was released from the Lafayette County Jail on September 24 after a local attorney, Jack Young, posted a $250 (equivalent to $2,568 in 2024) bail.^[14] Regarding the charge, McDowell faced a minimum penalty of $25 ($257 in 2024) and a maximum penalty of $100 ($1,027 in 2024) and 90 days in jail.^[14] Shortly after his arrest, the university placed him on suspension and informed the university's Student Judicial Council of the matter.^[14] The council consisted of five members and was chaired by Champ Terney, a son-in-law of Senator James Eastland.^[14]^[19] On September 24, the council held a hearing and voted to recommend McDowell's expulsion.^[14] The university's chancellor, J. D. Williams, and other university leaders agreed,^[14] and he was expelled that day.^[16] In an interview with The Daily Mississippian, Barnett expressed his support for the expulsion.^[14]

Efforts to reenroll

In late October 1963, Jet reported that McDowell was planning to reapply to the law school for the next semester.^[23] In July 1964, he requested that Judge Mize reenroll him in the university, telling the judge that his expulsion had been racially motivated.^[24] In his petition, he said that in 46 other cases where white students had been charged with the same offense, the students had not been expelled.^[24] On November 11 of that year, however, the board of trustees unanimously rejected an appeal to reinstate McDowell.^[22] Later that month, the Racial Committee of the Association of American Law Schools found that the university was within its rights to have expelled McDowell and recommended no further action on the case.^[22] In March 1965, the Associated Press reported that McDowell had lost another bid to reenroll in the university.^[25] The following month, Jet reported that Judge Mize had refused a request from McDowell to order the university to reinstate him.^[26]

After his expulsion, the University became an all-white institution for the first time since Meredith's admission.^[17] It would remain this way until June 1964, when Cleveland Donald Jr. enrolled as the first African American student since McDowell's expulsion.^[27]^[28] Like McDowell, Donald required a court order to enroll.^[29] However, according to historian David Sansing, following Donald's enrollment, the university's resistance to African American applicants began to fade, leading to further black enrollment into the university.^[29] In 1967, Reuben V. Anderson became the first African American to graduate from the University of Mississippi School of Law.^[17]^{[note 2]}

Later education

By October 1963, McDowell had been employed by the NAACP,^[23] where he worked as a temporary staffer.^[31] He worked for the Mississippi NAACP for several years.^[31] In May 1965, The Crisis reported that McDowell was attending the John Marshall Law School in Chicago.^[32] He later enrolled at Texas Southern University in Houston,^[22] where he continued his involvement with the NAACP.^[33] While at Texas Southern, he served as president for the university's student bar association.^[1] In late 1967, McDowell, who was the NAACP Special Youth Representative, was one of several students who were invited to testify before a congressional subcommittee headed by Senator John L. McClellan pertaining to a police riot that had occurred on the university's campus earlier that year.^[34]^[35] McDowell eventually earned a Juris Doctor from Texas Southern and returned to Mississippi.^[22]

Career

Law

In 1971, McDowell was admitted to The Mississippi Bar.^[22] Over the course of his career, he was also a member of the American Bar Association and the Magnolia Bar Association.^[1] He was admitted to practice law in the United States district courts of Northern Mississippi and Southern Mississippi, as well as in the courts of appeals for the Fifth and Eleventh Circuit.^[1]

After getting admitted to the bar, McDowell began practicing law in Drew,^[22] where he worked as a public defender.^[7]^[36] He began his private practice in 1975,^[1] representing several clients in cases pertaining to civil rights.^[37] From 1977 to 1979, he served as the managing attorney for North Mississippi Rural Legal Services in Clarksdale, Mississippi.^[1] He was also part of a group of lawyers that sought to reexamine cases regarding civil rights activists who had been killed.^[38] As part of this activism, McDowell and other African American community leaders pressured district attorneys to revive cases—many of which having never resulted in a prosecution—on killed African American civil rights activists.^[7] According to reporter Jerry Mitchell of Mississippi Today, McDowell and others wished to prosecute the killer of civil rights activists in a similar manner to how "Nazi war criminals" had been prosecuted.^[36] In the 1970s, prior to starting his private practice, he also served as the associate director of the Mississippi Bar Legal Services Program.^[1]

NAACP

In addition to his work as a lawyer, McDowell served as a field secretary for the NAACP in Mississippi,^[36] a position he held into the 1980s.^[37]^[7]^[39] In 1986, in his capacity as a regional head of the NAACP, he used the organization to support a successful unionization drive at the Delta Pride catfish processing plant in Sunflower County,^[40] which eventually resulted in the 1990 Delta Pride strike.^[39]^[41]

Government

McDowell held several roles in government at both the local and state levels.^[1] In Drew, he served as a member of the local school board, the board of aldermen, and the vice mayor, while also acting as the chairman for Sunflower County chapter of the Mississippi Democratic Party.^[1] At the state level, he became the executive director of the Mississippi Head Start Training Coordinating Council in 1969 and was made the state's coordinator for the program in 1973.^[1] In the 1970s, he also served as a member of the board of directors for the Mississippi State Penitentiary, a role he relinquished in 1978 after he was elected the county judge for Tunica County, Mississippi.^[1]

Death

On March 13, 1997,^{[note 3]} local police in Sunflower County found McDowell dead in his apartment,^[7]^[8] having suffered two gunshot wounds.^[37] At the time, McDowell was living alone in Drew.^[37] Relatives of his had requested the police to check on him after noticing that the front door to his residence was open and his vehicle was gone.^[37] According to the Associated Press, the police accused Juanrez Webb, a 19-year-old client of McDowell's, of killing him in the act of robbery.^[42] Webb was charged with capital murder, as well as grand larceny for the theft of McDowell's car, and was imprisoned in the Sunflower County Jail.^[37] At the time of his death, McDowell was still working as a public defender in the county.^[38]

Several months after his death, a fire destroyed his law offices, in the process also destroying many documents pertaining to his career and investigations into civil rights cases.^[43]

Personal life

McDowell was active in the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and was a leader in a local masonic Grand Lodge.^[1] He was also a senior pastor of the Greater Holly Grove Missionary Baptist Church of Drew.^[1]

Notes

^ While it was initially known as Lamar Hall, the building was later renamed Farley Hall after the School of Law relocated to a new facility.^[20]
^ In 1971, the Associated Press inaccurately referred to McDowell as a "graduate" of the University of Mississippi School of Law.^[30] However, McDowell ultimately left the university without a degree and later received a law degree from Texas Southern University instead.^[22]
^ Multiple sources state that McDowell's dead body was discovered on March 13, 1997.^[8]^[42]^[1] However, in their reporting of the event, The Washington Post gave the date as March 14.^[7]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q "Senate Concurrent Resolution 642". Mississippi Legislature. 1997. Archived from the original on February 25, 2006. Retrieved October 27, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Landon 2006, p. 98.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "Negro Law Student; Cleve McDowell Family Has Misgivings". The New York Times. June 6, 1963. p. 20. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Langguth, Jack (June 3, 1963). "Negro Seeks Writ for Mississippi U." The New York Times. p. 17. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on March 31, 2018. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ Favors 2019, p. 159.
^ ^a ^b Sitton, Claude (June 5, 1963). "Fears Rise on Attempt by Negro to Enter Mississippi U. Today". The New York Times. p. 25. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 22, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Cleve McDowell Dies at 56". The Washington Post. Associated Press. March 15, 1997. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 2269358. Archived from the original on August 28, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Civil Rights Lawyer Is Killed in Mississippi". The New York Times. Associated Press. March 15, 1997. p. 11. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on December 27, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Eagles 2009, p. 414.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Eagles 2009, p. 415.
^ Meredith 2019, p. 286.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Eagles 2009, p. 416.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Meredith Returns to a Calm Mississippi U. Campus". The New York Times. June 7, 1963. p. 14. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l Sitton, Claude (September 25, 1963). "Negro Is Expelled by Mississippi U." The New York Times. p. 1. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ Sanders 2024, pp. 170–171.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Civil Rights: The Pistol on the Steps". Time. October 4, 1963. ISSN 0040-781X. OCLC 1311479. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c Sanders 2024, p. 171.
^ ^a ^b Meredith 2012, p. 153.
^ ^a ^b Dickerson 1998, p. 76.
^ Landon 2006, pp. 81–83.
^ ^a ^b Landon 2006, pp. 98–99.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Landon 2006, p. 99.
^ ^a ^b "Cleve McDowell May Attempt to Re-Enter Ole Miss". Jet. XXV (1). Johnson Publishing Company: 26. October 24, 1963. ISSN 0021-5996. OCLC 1781708.
^ ^a ^b "Ousted Negro Seeks to Re-Enter School". The New York Times. United Press International. July 21, 1964. p. 18. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ "Cleve McDowell Loses Bid to Re-enter Mississippi U." The New York Times. Associated Press. March 23, 1965. p. 27. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ "McDowell Loses Another Bid for Ole Miss". Jet. XXVIII (1). Johnson Publishing Company: 44. April 15, 1965. ISSN 0021-5996. OCLC 1781708.
^ "Negro Wins Entry at Mississippi U.". The New York Times. United Press International. June 11, 1964. p. 22. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ "Negro Is Enrolled at Mississippi U.". The New York Times. United Press International. June 12, 1964. p. 18. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b Sansing 1990, p. 213.
^ "Blacks Mourn Girl Slain in Drew, Miss". The New York Times. Associated Press. May 30, 1971. p. 22. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b "Mississippians May Challenge Segregated State Fair". Jet. XXV (1). Johnson Publishing Company: 11. October 24, 1963. ISSN 0021-5996. OCLC 1781708.
^ "Name-Dropping Around the Country". The Crisis. 72 (5). NAACP: 318–319. May 1965. ISSN 1559-1573. OCLC 77079334.
^ "NAACP Seeks Federal Probe of TSU Riot". The Crisis. 74 (5). NAACP: 270. June 1967. ISSN 1559-1573. OCLC 77079334.
^ "Senate Unit Ask TSU Students to Testify". The Crisis. 74 (10). NAACP: 486–487. December 1967. ISSN 1559-1573. OCLC 77079334.
^ Riots, Civil and Criminal Disorders: Hearings Before the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on Government Operations. Part 3. United States Senate, Ninetieth Congress, First Session. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. 1967.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
^ ^a ^b ^c Mitchell, Jerry (June 5, 2025). "On this day in 1963". Mississippi Today. ISSN 0746-2247. OCLC 1080317596. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Cleve McDowell, Second Black Student to Attend Ole Miss, Found Shot to Death; Client Charged". Jet. 91 (19). Johnson Publishing Company: 15. March 31, 1997. ISSN 0021-5996. OCLC 1781708.
^ ^a ^b Rucker, LaReeca (December 29, 2019). "Journalist, author and former expat views Mississippi as 'observer for the ages'". Mississippi Today. ISSN 0746-2247. OCLC 1080317596. Archived from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ ^a ^b Tait 2016, p. 146.
^ Perl, Peter (October 12, 1986). "Unionization Wins a Round in South". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 2269358. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ Moye 2004, p. 202.
^ ^a ^b "Client Accused in Death of Civil Rights Lawyer". The New York Times. Associated Press. March 18, 1997. p. 14. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. Archived from the original on December 28, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
^ Thomason 2020, p. 161.

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