Child at the centre of court fight over racial segregation in US schools

Born: February 20, 1943;

Died: March 25, 2018

LINDA Brown, who has died aged 75, was an activist and public speaker who rose to prominence as one of the children at the centre of the fight against racial segregation in US schools.

As a girl in Kansas in the 1950s, Ms Brown's father tried to enrol her in an all-white school in Topeka. He and several black families were turned away, sparking the Brown v Board of Education case that challenged segregation in public schools.

A 1954 decision by the US Supreme Court followed, striking down racial segregation in schools and cementing Ms Brown's place in history as a key figure in the landmark case.

Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-counsel at NAACP Legal Defence and Educational Fund, said in a statement that Ms Brown was one of a band of heroic young people who, along with her family, courageously fought to end the ultimate symbol of white supremacy - racial segregation in public schools.

"She stands as an example of how ordinary schoolchildren took centre stage in transforming this country. It was not easy for her or her family, but her sacrifice broke barriers and changed the meaning of equality in this country," Ms Ifill said.

The NAACP's legal arm brought the lawsuit to challenge segregation in public schools before the Supreme Court and Ms Brown's father, Oliver Brown, became lead plaintiff.

Several black families in Topeka were turned down when they tried to enrol their children in white schools near their homes. Linda had been attending an all-black school, which involved a long walk and crossing a busy road. "I remember walking, tears freezing up my face," she said. "I had begun to cry because it was so cold and many times I had to turn around and run back home.

Linda, whose father was a welder, had grown up in an integrated neighbourhood. “I played with children that were Spanish-American,” she said. “I played with children that were white, children that were Indian, and black children in my neighbourhood.”

When their lawsuit came to court, it was joined with cases from Delaware, South Carolina, Virginia and the District of Columbia.

On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that separating black and white children was unconstitutional because it denied black children the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection under the law.

"In the field of public education, the doctrine of 'separate but equal' has no place," Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote. "Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."

The Brown decision overturned the court's Plessy v Ferguson decision, which on May 18, 1896 established a "separate but equal" doctrine for blacks in public facilities.

In response to Ms Brown's death, Kansas Governor Jeff Colyer said in a statement: "64 years ago, a young girl from Topeka, Kansas, sparked a case that ended segregation in public schools in America.

"Linda Brown's life reminds us that by standing up for our principles and serving our communities we can truly change the world. Linda's legacy is a crucial part of the American story and continues to inspire the millions who have realised the American dream because of her."

Brown v Board was one of the most high-profile case brought by Thurgood Marshall and the lawyers of the NAACP Legal Defence and Education Fund in their decade-plus campaign to chip away at the doctrine of "separate but equal". Oliver Brown, for whom the case was named, became a minister at a church in Springfield, Missouri. He died of a heart attack in 1961.

After school, Ms Brown attended Washburn University and became an educational consultant and public speaker, giving lectures about the famous case in which she was involved. In 1988 she and her sister Cheryl Brown Henderson founded the Brown Foundation for Educational Equity, Excellence and Research.

Linda Brown died in Topeka, Kansas. A cause of death was not released.