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ROSA PARKS 
The woman who was later to become known as "The Mother Of The Civil Rights Movement" was born, Rosa McCauley in Tuskegee, Alabama on February 4, 1913. At the age of 2, her family moved to Pine Level, Alabama, and when she was 11, she moved to Montgomery to live with an Aunt. In 1932, Rosa married Raymond Parks.
On December 1, 1955, she was traveling home from work as a seamstress at a Montgomery department store. When she was asked to give up her seat at the front of the "colored" section so that a white passenger could sit down, she refused, the driver called the police and she was arrested, charged and later, found guilty of disorderly conduct. Because of her prominence in the black community within the city, her arrest caused outrage which led to a meeting being called by Dr. Martin Luther King, who, at that time, was the preacher of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. At the meeting, which was held at the church, it was decided that they should respond by boycotting bus travel. On December 5, 1955, the bus boycott began. The protest went on for more than a year and finally ended on December 21, 1956, 381 days after it began. The end was finally brought about when the United States Supreme Court declared that Alabama's segregational bus laws were illegal. She later commented about the incident that led to the boycott, "My only concern was to get home after a hard days work". In 1957, Rosa and Raymond moved to Detroit in order to seek work as well as safety from the numerous death threats that the couple had received while living in Montgomery. They continued to be involved in the civil rights struggle. In 1987, she founded the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development, which became the focal point of her work from then on. The institute aims to motivate young people to achieve their highest potential. Towards the end of her life she chose to maintain a private life by reading, writing, and receiving family and close personal friends at her home. Rosa Parks died in her sleep on October 24th, 2005 at the age of 92. Links To Other Rosa Parks Internet Resources: The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development. Girl Power - Spotlight on Mrs. Rosa Parks, Mother of the Civil Rights Movement. Rosa Parks - The Woman who changed a Nation. Rosa Parks - The Torchbearer. Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. TSUM - The Life of Rosa Parks. SIGN UP TO OUR EMAIL NEWSLETTER If you would like us to keep you updated with changes and improvements to thatsalabama.com, please enter your email address here: If you would like to support thatsalabama.com with a donation via paypal, please click on this button: |
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