Civil rights icon and Friendship Nine member Dub Massey dies at 84

Willie ‘Dub’ Massey, a local civil rights icon and member of the Friendship Nine, has died at the age of 84, WCCB Charlotte reported. Massey was part of a group of Black men who staged a sit-in at a whites-only lunch counter in downtown Rock Hill in 1961, according to WSOC-TV.

The Friendship Nine are notable for choosing jail over bail after their arrest, serving 30 days in a York County prison camp. This act of protest helped energize the civil rights movement nationwide, WSOC-TV noted.

Massey spoke to WCCB Charlotte in 2011 about the courage it took to join the sit-in, recalling the hostility they faced including being spat upon and called names. He expressed pride in the legacy left for future generations.

Their convictions were overturned in 2015, more than five decades later, with significant efforts from Dr. Kimberly P. Johnson, who discussed Massey’s legacy with WIS, Fox Carolina reported.

Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced, WCCB Charlotte said.