Linda Brown, Center Of Brown V. Board Education Dies At 76

Linda Brown, who became the center of the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education which ended segregation in public schools, has died at the age of 76. Brown was thrust into the national spotlight in the fall of 1950, when she was just nine-years-old, after her father, Rev. Oliver Brown, walked her into an all-white school in Topeka, Kansas requesting she be enrolled at the school. When his request, along with the request of other black families in the area, were denied, he filed a lawsuit against the school board. In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Brown and the 12 other plaintiffs in the case, forcing local schools to desegregate their schools. 

Kansas Deputy Education Commissioner Dale Dennis said that Brown's "legacy is not only here but nationwide."

“Her legacy is not only here but nationwide,” Kansas Deputy Education Commissioner Dale Dennis said. “The effect she had on our society would be unbelievable and insurmountable.”

Kansas Governor Jeff Colyer said that "Brown’s life reminds us that sometimes the most unlikely people can have an incredible impact."

Linda Brown’s life reminds us that sometimes the most unlikely people can have an incredible impact and that by serving our community we can truly change the world.

Brown’s sister, Cheryl Brown Henderson, said the family will not comment on her passing.  Peaceful Rest Funeral Chapel of Topeka said that is handling the services for Brown, but did not give any details about the wake or funeral. 

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