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Statement from Hillary Clinton on the Death of Oliver White Hill

August 05, 2007

"I was deeply saddened to learn of the death of Oliver White Hill, a pioneer during the civil rights era. Hill was an attorney with the NAACP and Legal Defense Fund. Hill fought alongside his good friend Thurgood Marshall on the Brown v. Board of Education cases and in the 1940's practiced law in Virginia fighting on behalf of the separate-but-equal framework on a broad equalization campaign for better pay, transportation, and facilities for African American teachers and students. Hill was often quoted as saying, 'I went to law school so I could go out and fight segregation.'

"In 1999, Hill was awarded the nation's highest honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom award by my husband, President Bill Clinton. Oliver Hill truly stood up for everything that is necessary to make America equal. My thoughts and prayers are extended to the entire Hill family."

Hillary Clinton, Statement from Hillary Clinton on the Death of Oliver White Hill Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/291157

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