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Joseph McNeil, one of four students who launched the Greensboro sit-in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in 1960, died at 83. His act of peaceful protest, alongside Franklin McCain, Ezell Blair Jr (Jibreel Khazan), and David Richmond, sparked a wave of similar demonstrations across the US South, leading to desegregation and the Civil Rights Act. McNeil, who later served as a two-star general, is remembered for his courageous stand against racial injustice. Only Khazan survives from the original four.

Prepared by Lauren Mitchell and reviewed by editorial team.