James Wells has died, one of the Friendship Nine who sat down at a whites-only lunch counter in Rock Hill, South Carolina in 1961 and spent 30 days in jail rathern pay a $100 fine for their freedom. They were students at Friendship Junior College and were put to hard labor on a chain gang. It was a criticial moment as the civil rights movement picked up steam; more sit-ins meant more arrests and more fines, which activists couldn’t afford. Wells later served in the military, then became a lawyer; the Friendship 9’s convictions were overturned in 2015 and county prosecutors apologized. Above: autographing a children’s history book. (Reuters)
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