In 1963, Gerow condemned the assassination of the Civil Rights Movement activist Medgar Evers in Mississippi, saying, "We need frankly to admit that the guilt for the murder and the other instances of violence in our community tragically must be shared by all of us." The following year, he ordered Catholic elementary schools in Mississippi to admit students to the first grade "without regard to race." In 1965, Gerow ordered the desegregation of all grades in Catholic schools, in order to "bring our practice into full conformity with the teachings of Christ."
