Linda Brown, who became the focal point of the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court case when she was 9, has died at 76 years old.
Brown was in the third grade when her namesake moment in history began. Because her hometown of Topeka, Kansas did not allow white and black children to attend the same schools, Brown had to walk and then hitch a bus to an all-black school many miles out of the way. In addition, the district only had four schools designated for black students while there was a whopping 18 for white students.
Linda's father, Oliver Brown, along with 12 other families, were advised by the NAACP to try enrolling in Sumner Elementary School, which was closer to their home. When all of their applications were denied, the NAACP filed a lawsuit led by future Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. The historical case, known as Brown v. Board of Education, turned out in the plaintiff's favor. The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that banning black students from attending school with white students violated the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause.
Even after the "separate but equal" law was taken down, Brown continued to use her platform to champion school desegregation in Topeka.
The NAACP, as well as the Governer of Kansas, tweeted in memory of Brown and her contributions to Black rights.
