Designed by: Lindsey R.
Rosa Parks
February 4, 1913-October 24, 2005
Rosa Parks was an American civil rights activist , she was born in Tuskegee, Alabama and primarily raised in Montgomery. She became an active member in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
“You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it is right.”
-RoSa parks
Biography
Rosa Parks was born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama, she was surrounded by a family that valued education and hard work. She attended an industrial school for girls and a black junior highschool and later enrolled at alabama state teachers college in alabama. Parks was a hard worker and was therefore able to graduate highschool in 1929. Her remarkable achievements were not limited to her education; Rosa soon found her place in the fight for civil rights.
Childhood
Throughout her adult life, Rosa Parks remained a significant figure in the Civil Rights Movement. She and her husband Raymond relocated to Detroit, Michigan, where she worked for Congressman John Conyers following the Montgomery bus boycott. She worked with a number of civil rights organizations, including the NAACP and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and served on the board of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self-Development, which assists young people in gaining leadership skills and motivates them to get involved in the civil rights movement, was co-founded in 1987 by Parks.She died on October 24, 2005, at the age of 92, but her legacy as a pioneer in the civil rights movement and a supporter of justice and equality lives on.
Adulthood
Involvement
Rosa Parks became involved in Civil Rights after she rejected a bus driver’s order to leave a row of four seats in the “colored” section because the white section had filled up and move to the back of the bus. Rosa Parks played a vital role in the Civil Rights Movement because she was referred to as, “the mother of the civil rights movement.” When Rosa Parks was arrested on December 1, 1995, this launched a very well-known Montgomery Bus Boycott in which 17,000 black citizens participated. Rosa Parks was part of the NAACP. After the lynching of Emit Till at 14 years old she was inspired to make a historic change. Important evens that Rosa Parks participated in were, her attendance at the March on Washington in 1963 and 1965 where she witnessed the signing of the Voting Rights Act. In her later years she went on and was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal in the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC. Other significant individuals that attended the signing of the Voting Rights Act were, Martin Luther King Jr, and President Lyndon Johnson. Parks practiced nonviolent strategies. Rosa Parks greatest accomplishments were fighting for racial equality after the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and her help in investigating the killing of three black teens in 1967. Rosa Parks case was involved in the state court after the decision was still about segregation on public buses.
Changes
Changes that were made because of Rosa Parks actions where she invigorated the struggle for racial equality when she refused to give her seat up on a bus. Parks was a catalyst in the Civil Rights Movement and her actions proved how changes were made for the lives of African American’s. Rosa Parks successes are still seen today because she helped raise international awareness of racism in the United States. Her vital actions in the Civil Rights movement changed the world for the better and will always continue impacting the Black community.
Awards
Current Event
Numerous high-profile instances of systematic racism and police brutality against Black Americans have occurred recently, sparking protests and calls for change. Many individuals are taking a stand and speaking out against injustice like Rosa Parks did, and their deeds are assisting in drawing attention to the ongoing fight for equality and human rights. One current event that relates to Rosa Parks is the #Black Lives Matter. Unfortunately, the peaceful protests that took place during the 1960 don’t correlate to protests that happened today. However, the BLM protests were far from peaceful and were extremely violent. Thanks to Rosa Parks “justifiable anger “that is what links today's civil rights movements to past events. A second current event that took place in Florida Public Schools is, school officials took race out of their lesson plans. Meaning students were unable to learn about Rosa Parks and her valuable history lessons. I feel as if we are going back in time and making horrible progress regarding Civil Rights it is important that kids learn about their history the correct way so they can understand their past.
Bibliography
https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/on-this-day-the-voting-rights-act-of-1965-is-signed
https://www.gainesville.com/story/news/2007/12/06/four-get-rosa-parks-awards/31545791007/