Two people died, at least 75 injured and hundreds of extra troops were drafted to keep the peace after riot broke out when the first Black student arrived at the University of Mississippi campus in Oxford, on October 1, 1962.

The extra troops, which joined Federal forces already stationed in the nearby town of Oxford, were deemed necessary as the violence started to spread onto the surroundings streets.

The protesters were angry at the admission of James Meredith, a black American, to the university.

Then president, John F. Kennedy, addressed the nation in a televised broadcast urging a peaceful settlement to the dispute over racial segregation.