Member of Rock Hill’s Friendship 9 passes away

ROCK HILL, S.C. — We’re remembering one of the brave young Black men who became known as the Friendship 9 in Rock Hill.

Thomas Gaither passed away Monday in Pennsylvania.

In 1961, he and eight others protested racial segregation in Rock Hill when they staged a sit-in at an all-white lunch counter. They were arrested and made history when they took the stance of “jail, no bail.”

Decades later, the men had their records cleared and their names placed on seats at the same lunch counter where they were refused service.

Gaither was 86 years old.

(VIDEO >> ‘Had to be made’: Rock Hill Schools says job cuts will get more money into classrooms)

‘Had to be made’: Rock Hill Schools says job cuts will get more money into classrooms

©2024 Cox Media Group