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Ground-breaking actor Nichelle Nichols, known for her role as Uhura on the original Star Trek has passed away Saturday night July 30, 2022 at the age of 89 of natural causes.

The announcement was made at her website devoted to memorializing her character, , by her son.

Last night, my mother, Nichelle Nichols, succumbed to natural causes and passed away. Her light, however, like the ancient galaxies now being seen for the first time, will remain for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from, and draw inspiration.

Hers was a life well lived and as such a model for us all.

I, and the rest of our family, would appreciate your patience and forbearance as we grieve her loss until we can recover sufficiently to speak further. Her services will be for family members and the closest of her friends and we request that her and our privacy be respected.

Live Long and Prosper,

Kyle Johnson”

Per altwire, Nichelle was also well recognized for becoming an icon of the Civi Rights movement.

Nichols was also an icon for the Civil Rights movement, as her appearance on the show greatly changed how African Americans were portrayed on television. In fact, it was Martin Luther King jr who convinced Nichelle to stay on Star Trek, helping to humanize the civil rights movement for millions of Americans.

UPDATE: The first of what will doubtless be many obituaries and reports in major media has gone online at the Washington Post. (The link is a free version of the article).

She helped break ground on TV by showing a Black woman in a position of authority and who shared with co-star William Shatner one of the first interracial kisses on American prime-time television

Nichelle Nichols, an actress whose role as the communications chief Uhura in the original “Star Trek” franchise in the 1960s helped break ground on TV by showing a Black woman in a position of authority and who shared with co-star William Shatner one of the first interracial kisses on American prime-time television, died July 30 at 89.

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Ms. Nichols, a statuesque dancer and nightclub chanteuse, had a few acting credits when she was cast in “Star Trek.” She said she viewed the TV series as a “nice steppingstone” to Broadway stardom, hardly anticipating that a low-tech science-fiction show would become a cultural touchstone and bring her enduring recognition.

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Ms. Nichols worked with series creator Gene Roddenberry, her onetime lover, to imbue Uhura with authority — a striking departure for a Black TV actress when “Star Trek” debuted on NBC in 1966. Actress Whoopi Goldberg often said that when she saw “Star Trek” as an adolescent, she screamed to her family, “Come quick, come quick. There’s a Black lady on television and she ain’t no maid!”

The Guardian has a truly wonderful pictorial spread. Nichelle Nichols life in pictures.

This content was originally published here.