Rosa Parks was a Black civil rights activist who refused to give up her bus seat to a white man in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955. Her act of defiance sparked a mass boycott of the city’s buses that lasted for more than a year and became a turning point in the struggle for racial equality in the United States. She is widely regarded as the “mother of the civil rights movement” and one of the most influential figures in American history.
Early Life and Education
Rosa Louise McCauley was born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama, to James and Leona McCauley. Her father was a carpenter and stonemason, and her mother was a teacher. Rosa had a younger brother, Sylvester, who was born in 1915. When Rosa was two years old, her parents separated, and she moved with her mother and brother to Pine Level, a small town near Montgomery, where they lived on her grandparents’ farm. Rosa’s grandparents were former slaves who had become landowners and activists for Black rights.
Rosa grew up in a segregated and racist society, where she faced discrimination and violence from white people on a daily basis. She witnessed the Ku Klux Klan burning Black churches and schools, lynching Black people, and terrorizing her community. She also experienced the humiliation of having to attend inferior schools, use separate facilities, and abide by unfair laws that restricted the rights and freedoms of Black people.
Rosa was educated at home by her mother until she was 11 years old, when she enrolled in the Montgomery Industrial School for Girls, a private school founded by liberal white women. There she received a quality education and learned skills such as sewing and cooking. She also attended the Alabama State Teachers College High School for one year, but had to drop out at the age of 16 to care for her ill grandmother and mother.
Marriage and Activism
In 1932, at the age of 19, Rosa married Raymond Parks, a barber and a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the oldest and largest civil rights organization in the country. Raymond encouraged Rosa to finish her high school education, which she did in 1933. He also inspired her to become more involved in the fight for racial justice. In 1943, Rosa joined the NAACP as a secretary and youth leader. She worked closely with E.D. Nixon, the president of the Montgomery chapter, and participated in several campaigns to end discrimination and violence against Black people. She also attended workshops at the Highlander Folk School in Tennessee, a center for training activists for social change.
The Bus Boycott
On December 1, 1955, Rosa boarded a bus after a long day of work as a seamstress at a department store. She sat in the first row of the “colored” section, behind the 10 seats reserved for white passengers. As more white passengers got on the bus, the driver, James Blake, ordered Rosa and three other Black passengers to move back and make room for them. The other three complied, but Rosa refused. She later explained that she was not tired physically, but tired of giving in to injustice.
Blake called the police, who arrested Rosa and charged her with violating the city’s segregation law. She was released on bail later that night. Her arrest sparked outrage among the Black community of Montgomery, who decided to boycott the buses until they were desegregated and treated with respect. The boycott was led by Martin Luther King Jr., a young Baptist minister who became the spokesperson for the movement. The boycott lasted for 381 days, during which about 40,000 Black commuters walked, biked, carpooled, or took taxis instead of riding the buses. They faced harassment, intimidation, violence, and arrests from white authorities, but they remained peaceful and determined.
The boycott ended on December 20, 1956, when the Supreme Court ruled that bus segregation was unconstitutional in Browder v. Gayle , a case filed by four other Black women who had been arrested for refusing to give up their seats on buses. The decision was a major victory for the civil rights movement and inspired other protests across the country.
Later Years and Legacy
Rosa’s role in the boycott made her a national hero and an icon of resistance to racial oppression. However, it also brought her hardships and dangers. She lost her job at the department store and received death threats from white supremacists. In 1957, she moved with her husband and mother to Detroit , Michigan , where she hoped to find better opportunities and safety. There she worked as a seamstress until 1965 , when she became an assistant to John Conyers , a Black congressman . She also continued her activism , supporting causes such as Black Power , anti-apartheid , and the release of political prisoners .
Rosa received numerous honors and awards for her courage and contributions to the civil rights movement. She was awarded the NAACP’s Spingarn Medal in 1979 , the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996 , and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1999 . She also published two autobiographies , My Story in 1992 and Quiet Strength in 1995 . She died on October 24, 2005 , at the age of 92 , in Detroit. Her body lay in honor at the Capitol Rotunda in Washington, D.C. , becoming the first woman and second Black person to receive this tribute. She was buried at the Woodlawn Cemetery in Detroit.
Rosa Parks is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in American history. Her simple act of defiance on a bus sparked a movement that changed the course of history and inspired generations of people around the world to stand up for their rights and dignity. She is remembered as a symbol of courage, dignity, and freedom, and as a woman who changed history.