It is crucial to establish an understanding of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. This was such a powerful and influential time in history that marked future events. There were so many significant leaders that managed to improve the whole world. Martin Luther King Jr., one of the most commemorated of the civil rights leaders, published an essay called "The World House" explaining the metaphor of the world seen as one big household. This helped better understand the importance of desegregation and unity. It helped clarify events like the enrollment of James Meredith at the University of Mississippi. 

"James Meredith was a civil rights activist who became the first African American to attend the University of Mississippi in 1962," (Biography). Having already accomplished being a part of the US Air Force and attending an all-black college, Meredith decided to take it to the next level. In 1961, he applied to the all-white University of Mississippi and was immediately accepted thanks to his outstanding resume. Once the registrar discovered his race they withdrew his admission. All public educational institutions had been ordered to desegregate due to Brown v. Board which is why Meredith filed a suit alleging discrimination (Biography). It was absolutely immoral and unlawful to deny Meredith his acceptance to the university. Undoubtedly the state court ruled against him, however the case made it all the way to the Supreme Court and they finally gave Meredith justice which is just what he deserved. The university was deeply afflicted and set out to disturb Meredith's registration in 1962. Riots erupted and government involvement had to be put into action to maintain the peace (Biography). By October, James Meredith had finally succeeded in becoming an official student at the University of Mississippi. 

This major event in history proves how necessary it was for the world to change and just how unlawful the world dealt with difference. Meredith's bravery should have been celebrated and yet it was destroyed. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "The World House" talks about how critical it was to start moving forward, embracing each other, and start working together just like the members of a household would. This metaphor is brilliant, it empowers people to look at one another like brother and sister and establish the fact that sometimes the members of a home disagree but need each other to maintain the balance. Without coexistence the world or "house" cannot function. 

King establishes in this piece and crucial point that racism is a "threat to human welfare and survival as a whole," (Baldwin). King says that racial issues need to be seriously addressed before the world can move towards properly building new paths (Baldwin). King says that "all life is interrelated" meaning that everything and anything effects everyone and anyone. He says that "we must learn to live as brothers or we will perish as fools," (Carolina Reader). If we carry on as individuals and not a unified society, mankind cannot prosper. He says that action needs to be taken now before it is too late. One of the most outstanding lines in this essay was "we can never again live apart, we must learn somehow to live with each other in peace" (Carolina Reader). He says this demonstrate how necessary it is to unify especially since no one is going anywhere so they might as well get comfortable. 

Many things determined the Civil Rights Movement but this essay strongly clarified and explained the reasons behind this movement and why the civil rights activists made the decisions that they made. It is crucial to understand this in order to appreciate what King has accomplished and realize how ground breaking and courageous James Meredith was.
