MONTGOMERY, Ala. -a One particular of your initial black college students who enrolled on the University of Alabama a half century ago in defiance of racial segregation has died. James Hood of Gadsden was 70.
Officials at Adams-Buggs Funeral Dwelling in Gadsden mentioned they are really dealing with arrangements for Hood, who died Thursday.
Then-Alabama Gov. George Wallace created his infamous "stand while in the schoolhouse door" in the failed work to stop Hood and Vivian Malone from registering for courses with the university in 1963.
Hood and Malone have been accompanied by Deputy U.S. Lawyer Common Nicholas Katzenbach whenever they had been confronted by Wallace because they attempted to enter the university's Foster Auditorium to register for courses and pay out charges.
Wallace backed down later on that day and Hood and Malone registered for courses.
UA President Judy Bonner remembered Hood as being a guy of "courage and conviction" for currently being a single from the initial black college students to enroll in the university.
"His connection for the university continued decades later on when he returned to UA to earn his doctorate in 1997. He was a valued member in the University of Alabama neighborhood, and he'll be missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones in the course of this tricky time," Bonner explained.
Hood was the final survivor amongst the key figures while in the schoolhouse door incident. Wallace died in 1998, Vivian Malone Jones in 2005 and Katzenbach final yr.
Just after enrolling, Hood remained at UA for any number of months and moved to Michigan, in which he obtained a bachelor's degree from Wayne State University in addition to a master's degree from Michigan State.
He later on moved to Wisconsin, the place he worked in the Madison Location Technical University for 26 many years. He retired in 2002 as chairman of public security companies in charge of police and fire teaching.
He lastly returned to UA later on in lifestyle to earn his doctorate.
Culpepper Clark, writer of "The Schoolhouse Door: Segregation's Final Stand with the University of Alabama," referred to as the schoolhouse door incident "an iconic moment" inside the Civil Rights Motion due to the fact it supplied a confrontation in between Wallace and also the Kennedy administration. He explained the incident was "symbolically important" and assisted bring about passage in the Voting Rights Act.
Clark described Hood as being a guy having a good deal of "intellectual energy" who understood the significance of what he did with the University of Alabama in 1963.
"He did not test to produce it into over what it had been," Clark mentioned.
The Rev. Preston Nix grew up in Etowah County and stated he knew of Hood, who was many many years older than he.
Nix stated it took a great deal of courage for Hood to challenge the segregation with the University of Alabama in 1963.
Nix mentioned he felt Hood did what he did partly to "pave the way" for other individuals to become capable to make improvements to themselves and obtain a greater schooling and partly due to the fact he wished to attend the University of Alabama.
Samory Pruitt, vice president for neighborhood affairs at UA, agreed with Nix.
"Because of what he did, folks like me have been afforded the chance to visit the University of Alabama," explained Pruitt, that is black. "I feel it is about persons getting the chance to get the most beneficial they could be."
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