Clyde Kennard – A Man with a Purpose
By
John C Abercrombie
This is day 17 of a 28 post series for Black History Month 2023, where we look at one of the most devistating events aimed at Black citizens.
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Clyde Kennard is a little-known hero of the Civil Rights movement. High morals and the tenacity of conviction his life and work should be better known. There are many who deserve the adoration of us but need people to breathe life into the story and make it known.
Kennard was a civil rights pioneer and led the way to the desegregation of higher education in Mississippi. He paved the way for students of color to integrate and graduate from Mississippi Universities.
Prior to being denied by the Southern Mississippi University, Kennard had moved to Chicago to take advantage of educational opportunities that were not available to Blacks in the South. He had served with distinction in the Armed Forces and returned to Mississippi to tend to his Mother who had lost her husband. He was an excellent student at the University of Chicago where he completed 3 years before the move.
Clyde Kennard was the focus of the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission. The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission is sometimes referred to as the Sov-Com was a state agency that officially existed in Mississippi from 1956 to 1977. The purpose of the commission was to control (prevent) civil rights activism. In this case we have state government funded by the state through the taxes imposed on the very citizens they were fighting to prevent them from the rights and privileges of full citizenship. It was overseen by the Governor of Mississippi and the objectives of the commission were to protect the sovereignty of the state of Mississippi AND her sister states from encroachment of the Federal Government and to coordinate activities to portray the state and racial segregation in a more positive light. Keep in mind that even the most noble fight still resulted in a stain on the reputation on people who never should have had it. Reputations were destroyed.
After Kennard published a letter in the local paper about integrated education, the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission, a state-supported agency, conspired to have him arrested on false charges. He was convicted and sentenced to seven years at Parchman Penitentiary, the state’s notorious high-security prison. He became terminally ill with cancer. The governor accused him of malingering and being lazy and denied him food and water as he was dying.
There are conditions that seem excessive, but this was the norm during the years as people fought for human dignity and civil rights with those bold enough to speak out becoming targets of not only government funded groups, but others condoned by government as they were sympathetic to the cause of suppression of human rights and dignity to Blacks.
The state governor refused to pardon him but released him on parole in January 1963. Kennard died that year in July. After publication in 2005 of evidence that Kennard had been framed, supporters tried to secure a posthumous pardon for him, but Governor Haley Barbour refused. Supporters gained Barbour’s cooperation in petitioning the court to review Kennard’s case, and in 2006, his conviction was overturned completely.
Serving governors and lieutenant governors of Mississippi were ex officio members of the commission. The Sovereignty Commission spied on and conspired against civil rights activists and organized pressure and economic oppression of those who supported the civil rights movement in Mississippi.
A Measure of Progress: The Clyde Kennard Story is a documentary produced with the hope to spark an open dialogue about race relations and make Kennard’s voice heard, not just at the University, but in the community. Link to book included in this post.
On February 13, 2018, there was an unveiling of the Clyde Kennard Mississippi Freedom Marker at the University of Southern Mississippi and his was the 25th marker from the Mississippi Freedom Trail task force.
The marker is located on the lawn of Kennard-Washington Hall, the student services building named after Kennard and Walter Washington, the first Black student to receive a doctorate degree from the University.
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Clyde Kennard
Clyde Kennard Cases
President’s Award Recipient and Acclaimed Historian Explains Why Every American Should Know About the Events
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Book
A Slow, Calculated Lynching: The Story of Clyde Kennard (Race, Rhetoric, and Media Series
In the years following Brown v. Board of Education, countless Black citizens endured violent resistance and even death while fighting for their constitutional rights. One of those citizens, Clyde Kennard (1927–1963), a Korean War veteran and civil rights leader from Hattiesburg, Mississippi, attempted repeatedly to enroll at the all-white Mississippi Southern College―now the University of Southern Mississippi―in the late 1950s.
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USM Graduation, Honoring Clyde Kennard
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Book
The Life and Times of Clyde Kennard
In 1955, Clyde Kennard, a decorated army veteran, was forced to cut short the final year of his studies at the University of Chicago and return home to Mississippi due to family circumstances, where Kennard made the decision to complete his education. Yet still on the eve of the civil rights movement in America, Kennard’s decision would be one of the first serious attempts to integrate any public school at the college level in the state. The Life and Times of Clyde Kennard tells the true story of Kennard’s efforts to complete his further education at Mississippi Southern College (now the University of Southern Mississippi) against the backdrop of the institutionalized social order of the times and the prevailing winds of change attempting to blow that social order away. As Meredith’s admission to “Ole Miss” became more widely known at the time, Kennard became the forgotten man. Author Derek R. King shares his extensive research into Kennard’s life, and touches on key events that shaped those times.
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Clyde Kennard Mississippi Freedom Trail Marker Unveiling
The marker honors Kennard’s legacy and efforts to desegregate higher education in Mississippi, and is part of the Mississippi Freedom Trail, which commemorates the people and places in Mississippi that played a pivotal role in the American Civil Rights Movement.
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Book
The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities
This comprehensive history of African American fraternities and sororities celebrates the spirit of Black Excellence in higher education that has produced American leaders in politics, sports, arts, and culture such as Kamala Harris, Colin Kaepernick, Michael Jordan, Thurgood Marshall, and Toni Morrison, and is sure to be a treasured resource for generations to come.
America’s Black fraternities and sororities are a unique and vital part of 20th century African American history, providing young black achievers with opportunities to support each other while they serve their communities and the nation.
From pioneering work in the suffragette movement to extraordinary strides during the Civil Rights era to life-changing inner-city mentoring programs, members of these organizations share a proud tradition of brotherhood, sisterhood, and service.
Today, America’s nine black fraternities and sororities are millions of members strong with chapters at HBCUs, Ivy League Schools, and colleges across the nation including Stanford University, Howard University, and the University of Chicago.
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Highway Dedication Ceremony Held For Clyde Kennard – Quentis Jones
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Book
Things Black People Aren’t Taught
This book is just a basic outline of tools, knowledge, and tricks to succeed as Steve Harvey stated, “I want you to learn how to fail and win anyway because failure cometh.”
I did not learn to invest because, as Blacks, we were taught to go to school/good education, get a good job, and put your money in the bank. Well, that advice, as good as it seems, will not help you retire well.
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Carrying the Burden: The Story of Clyde Kennard
This is a documentary created by Mona Ghadiri, Agnes Mazur, and Callie McCune for the 2005-2006 National History Day competition, receiving 7th in the nation.
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For Black History Month 2020, we posted daily. These posts focus on the reality of Black life in America after the Civil War culminating in the landmark Brown v Board of Education that changed so many of the earlier practices. To see the posts, click here
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We also posted a 5 part mini-series on the 100th anniversary of one of the most horrific massacres in the history of America. Hundreds of Blacks were slaughtered and 10,000 left homeless in this largely unknown event. To see the posts, click here.
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Schomburg – The man who built a library
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We all too often don’t see the depth of the price paid by people who are out front in the fight for civil rights for ALL people. While it is easy to believe that it is a one sided right or benefit, it more likely benefits all a bit down the road.
Clyde Kennedy wanted to finish his education. He performed at a high level at the University of Chicago. The reason he was back in Mississippi was noble, he was there to take care of his aging mother. Had false criminal charges and was sentenced to 7 years for a crime he did not commit. After being diagnosed with cancer and a poor prognosis, he was denied food and water.
While this is more common than most dare think about, it is often the price our heroes have paid. Don’t disrespect the commitment of these brave people.
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We all too often don’t see the depth of the price paid by people who are out front in the fight for civil rights for ALL people. While it is easy to believe that it is a one sided right or benefit, it more likely benefits all a bit down the road.
Clyde Kennedy wanted to finish his education. He performed at a high level at the University of Chicago. The reason he was back in Mississippi was noble, he was there to take care of his aging mother. Had false criminal charges and was sentenced to 7 years for a crime he did not commit. After being diagnosed with cancer and a poor prognosis, he was denied food and water.
While this is more common than most dare think about, it is often the price our heroes have paid. Don’t disrespect the commitment of these brave people.