FLAGS LOWERED IN HONOR OF CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY OLIVER HILL

Gov. Timothy Kaine ordered the flag of the Commonwealth of Virginia at state facilities to be lowered in honor of Virginia civil rights attorney Oliver Hill. The state and university flag will remain at half staff until sunset on Sunday, Aug. 12.

Hill, who died Sunday at age 100, was part of a series of lawsuits in 1954 against racially segregated public schools that became the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Brown vs. Board of Education decision.

"Few individuals in Virginia's rich history have worked as tirelessly as Oliver Hill to make life better for all of our citizens. His life's work was predicated on the simple truth that all men and women truly are created equal," Kaine noted in a public statement. "With righteous determination, a sense of honor, and at considerable personal risk, Mr. Hill methodically and skillfully worked within the legal system to win landmark cases in voting rights, equal pay, better schools, and fair housing."