Famed protesters ‘The Friendship Nine’ to have arrest records expunged

Nine black men arrested for sitting at a whites-only South Carolina lunch counter 54 years ago may be civil rights heroes, but in the eyes of the law they are still convicted trespassers. That criminal record will soon be expunged. On Wednesday, Kevin Brackett (the solicitor for York and Union counties) is expected to ask a Rock Hill judge to vacate the arrests and convictions of the men known as the ‘Friendship Nine.’ Willie McCleod, Robert McCullough, W.T. “Dub” Massey, Thomas Gaither, Clarence Graham, James Wells, David Williamson Jr., John Gaines and Mack Workman were arrested in February 1961 for ordering food from a whites-only counter at McCrory’s in Rock Hill. Arrested for trespassing and breach of peace, the young men, eight of whom were students at Friendship Junior College, opted for a month’s hard labor rather than allow bail to be posted for them by civil rights groups. And although their records will soon be clean, the men hope their commitment to nonviolence can remain as a positive example for people protesting various issues today.