Eastland, James Oliver (1904-1986), a Mississippi Democrat, served in the United States Senate for more than 35 years–from 1943 to 1979. He was chairman of the Senate’s powerful Judiciary Committee from 1956 to 1979. As chairman of this committee, Eastland repeatedly supported internal security measures and opposed civil rights bills. From 1972 to 1979, he was also president pro tempore, the official who presides over the Senate during the vice president’s absence.
Eastland was born in Doddsville, Mississippi, on Nov. 28, 1904. He studied law at the University of Alabama and passed his bar examination in 1927. Eastland served in the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1928 to 1932. He was appointed to the U.S. Senate in 1941, following the death of Senator Pat Harrison, and served for three months. Eastland was elected to the Senate in 1942 and took office in 1943. Although he strongly opposed racial integration, he could not block a series of civil rights bills passed by Congress in the 1960’s. He died on Feb. 19, 1986.
