(RNN) - Civil rights activist Linda Brown, who was at the center of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case in 1954, has died, according to CNN.
Brown, a native of Topeka, KS, was 9 years old when her father, Oliver Brown, tried to enroll her in the all-white Sumner School in 1951. When the school blocked her enrollment, her father sued and became lead plaintiff in the case that ended school segregation.
The case was argued by Thurgood Marshall. In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."
Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer paid tribute to Linda Brown after news of her death spread.
64 years ago a young girl from Topeka brought a case that ended segregation in public schools in America. 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. #ksleg https://t.co/NN08FbGq7s
— Governor Jeff Colyer (@GovJeffColyer) March 26, 2018
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