CHARLOTTE -- Joseph McNeil's name may not be known to many -- but what he did is.
McNeil was one of the four NC A&T university students who sat down and asked for service at a whites-only lunch counter at the Greensboro Woolworth's in 1960 -- sparking the country's sit-in movement
"There was a lot of uncertainty, uncertainty about ....being attacked by people watching what we were doing,” said McNeil
Even by police in the Jim Crow South.
"All of us grew up in segregated environments...and at various times in our careers and lives we experienced anger,” said McNeil.
The final straw for Joseph McNeil came while traveling back from visiting his parents in New York.
"I couldn't get served and have my hamburger at the counter others were being served, whites and it made me very angry,” he said.
On February 1, 1960, McNeil and three other freshmen from NC A&T stepped into action and history.
"We had talked about doing something, taking some action, not just being a part of the problem and talking about it, but actually doing something.”
When they sat down at the whites-only lunch counter they were refused service.
"Onlookers would say things like, "you think those boys are going to sit there all day?" said McNeil
They did -- and returned -- the sit-ins spread across the nation.
The company gave in by July.
"Well, it was a victory in a sense, but also a realization that this is a small effort, there's still much to be done,” he said.
McNeil finally got served when he returned to school in September.
"The coffee wasn't that great and the apple pie was at best, marginal."
McNeil thinks the push for civil rights is a continuum -- still needed today.
"Sometimes it takes time, and sometimes it's painful, most things that are worthwhile, don't happen or end quickly .”