On the lower reaches of the Mississippi River.

1966 On a sultry morning in June, James meredith set out from Memphis, holding an African cane in one hand and a Bible in the other, thinking of a unique mission in his mind. The 32-year-old Air Force veteran and Columbia University law student plans to March 220 miles to Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, to prove that blacks can walk freely in the south. The voting rights bill was passed only a year ago, and its goal is to encourage African Americans to register to vote. "He recalled," I'm fighting fear. "I'm fighting for full citizenship for myself and my kind. This is not the first time that meredith has rushed into hostile areas alone. Four years ago, he became the first black man to be admitted to the University of Mississippi in Oxford, despite the strong * * * from Governor Ross barnett and the campus riots that killed two people and injured more than 160 people, including dozens of federal marshals. 1963, when meredith graduated from Miss Ole, a segregationist's "Never" button hung on his black robe. The day after he claimed to "walk bravely",

On a sultry afternoon near Hernando, Mississippi, a few journalists, photographers and law enforcement officers were waiting for him. Jack Sonel, a 26-year-old young photographer of Associated Press in New Orleans, and a colleague of rival United Press International were sitting in a parked car, waiting for the life photographer to bring them coke, when meredith and several followers appeared in people's sight.

Suddenly, a man began to shout, "I just want James meredith!" " "The explosion of the shotgun resounded through the highway, hitting meredith's head, neck, back and legs. Sonel jumped out of the car and began to click, taking two volumes of photos with his pair of cameras. Later, he drove back to Memphis in a panic, convinced that he would be fired for not taking pictures of the attackers and victims. At the same time, a few minutes later, the ambulance arrived in Merediz and he was lying alone on the road. " Will someone not help me? "He remembers that among the many photos taken by Sunnel, one photo showed that the fallen people on Highway 5 1 screamed in pain.

. It was published in newspapers and magazines all over the country and won the Pulitzer Prize. This photo shows the pain and depression of southern blacks in the 1960s. "When people see this scene in newspapers and on TV, when they see what is happening in the south, they can't believe it," said Sonel, 65, who has retired and lives in Meta, Louisiana. He said that his eternal regret for that day 40 years ago was that he didn't put down his camera to help the injured meredith.

As it happens, Sonel took a photo where he could see the gunman. But you don't need proof. Aubrey James Norvell, an unemployed hardware store clerk in Memphis, was arrested at the scene of the shooting and pleaded guilty before the trial. He was sentenced to 18 months of five-year imprisonment, and then almost disappeared. Novell, 79, lives in Memphis. After meredith was shot, civil rights leaders gathered in his ward, including Martin Luther King, Stokely Carmichael and Floyd McKissick. Recently, the civil rights movement has become tense because of internal differences. Leaders such as the king called for non-violence and integration, while others such as Carmack advocated a more radical position of black power. But now, the leaders put aside their differences and continue their pilgrimage to meredith.

Meredith's wound is recovering, and dozens of people gathered in Hernando to restore the so-called "meredith". Led by King, carmichael and Mike Kissick, the team walked for nearly three weeks, helping to register thousands of African-American voters along the way. Meredith himself rejoined the pilgrimage on June 26th, the last day. About 65,438+02,000 victorious soldiers entered Jackson in the cheering crowd. In retrospect, he said that his inspiration came from the skin color difference between the two sides. "You can't forget that white people in the south don't have black freedom," he explained. White supremacy is official and legal, and it is enforced by judges and legal personnel. A white man who doesn't realize and carry out the task of white supremacy is as vulnerable to persecution as any black man and works as a stockbroker, professor and writer. Then, in the late 1980s, the former civil rights idol shocked many admirers, when he joined the staff of the ultra-conservative North Carolina Senator jesse helms and supported the former Klan leader David Duke to run for the governor of Louisiana. Meredith, 7 1, still defends these choices, saying that he is "spying on the enemy". Meredith is married, has five children and five grandchildren, lives in Jackson, and occasionally gives speeches to some groups on civil rights issues.

Horace huntly, director of the oral history program at the Birmingham Institute for Civil Rights in Alabama, said that he had made great progress in the all-round struggle for civil rights and human rights, but these were not "weakened by what happened later". He said that the paintings were carved with stones.