Rosa Parks (born February 4, 1913, Tuskegee, Alabama, U.S.—died October 24, 2005, Detroit, Michigan) was an American civil rights activist whose refusal to relinquish her seat on a public bus precipitated the 1955–56 Montgomery bus boycott in Alabama, which became the spark that ignited the civil rights movement in the United States. Rosa Louise McCauley Parks (February 4, 1913 – October 24, 2005) was an American activist in the civil rights movement, best known for her pivotal role in the Montgomery bus boycott. December 1, 1955: Rosa Parks Is Arrested. On Thursday, December 1, 1955, the 42-year-old Rosa Parks was commuting home from a long day of work at the Montgomery Fair department store by bus. Black Parks work proved to be invaluable in Detroit’s Civil Rights Movement. She was an active member of several organizations which worked to end inequality in the city. By 1980, after consistently giving to the movement both financially and physically Parks, now widowed, suffered from financial and health troubles. In 1932 she married Raymond Parks, a barber and member of the NAACP. At that time, Raymond Parks was active in the Scottsboro case. In 1943 Rosa Parks joined the local chapter of the NAACP and was elected secretary. Two years later, she registered to vote, after twice being denied. By 1949 Parks was advisor to the local NAACP Youth Council. Rosa Parks, a name that resonates with courage and defiance, ushered in a new era of civil rights in the United States. Her singular act of refusing to surrender her bus seat to a white passenger on December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, ignited a movement that would change the course of American history. In addition to her arrest, Parks lost her job as a seamstress at a local department store. Her husband Raymond lost his job as a barber at a local air force base after his boss forbade him to talk about the legal case. Parks and her husband left Montgomery in 1957 to find work, first traveling to Virginia and later to Detroit, Michigan. rosa louise parks biography Rosa Louise Parks was nationally recognized as the “mother of the modern day civil rights movement” in America. Her refusal to surrender her seat to a white male passenger on a Montgomery, Alabama bus, December 1, 1955, triggered a wave of protest December 5, 1955 that reverberated throughout the United States. Rosa Parks chose to be arrested instead of giving up her seat and became a symbol of the fight against an unjust, racist system. She was nicknamed “the first lady of civil rights” by the U.S. Congress. The Early Life And Activism Of Rosa Parks . Rosa Parks was born in 1913 (February 4), in Tuskegee, Alabama. Her maiden name was McCauley. In fact, Rosa Parks was just 42 years old when she took that famous ride on a City Lines bus in Montgomery – a town known for being the first capital of the pro-slavery Confederacy during the Rosa Parks' Bus . In 1955, African Americans were still required by a Montgomery, Alabama, city ordinance to sit in the back half of city buses and to yield their seats to white riders if the With husband Raymond’s support, Rosa earned her high school diploma in 1933. At the time, few blacks in Montgomery had a high school education, but Rosa still struggled to find a suitable job. She took in sewing work at home on the side and worked as an insurance agent, office clerk, domestic, and nurse’s aide to supplement Raymond’s income. The Montgomery Bus Boycott is seen as a turning point in the fight for racial equality and justice, and Rosa Parks' bravery and determination played a crucial role in its success. Early Life and Activism Rosa Parks was born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama. April 14, 2005: Parks and the hip-hop group Outkast reach an out-of-court settlement regarding their 1998 song "Rosa Parks." October 24, 2005: Parks dies at the age of 92 On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks boarded a bus after a long day at work. In line with the era’s Jim Crow laws enforcing racial segregation , she was required to sit in the designated “colored” section. Rosa Parks didn’t sit on the bus, launch the Montgomery bus boycott–which lasted many months and finally forced the city to change the bus segregation laws in December of 1956–and galvanize Civil Rights activists because her feet were tired after a long day. After a long day’s work at a Montgomery department store, where she worked as a seamstress, Parks boarded the Cleveland Avenue bus for home on December 1, 1955. Rosa Parks, often hailed as the “Mother of the Civil Rights Movement,” played a pivotal role in challenging racial segregation in the United States. Her refusal to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus to a white man on December 1, 1955, sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott and eventually led to significant advancements in the fight against racial discrimination. Rosa Parks, the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement" was one of the most important citizens of the 20th century. Mrs. Parks was a seamstress in Montgomery, Alabama when, in December of 1955, she refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white passenger. The bus driver had her arrested. She was tried and convicted of violating a local ordinance. Her act sparked a citywide boycott of the Montgomery’s boycott was not entirely spontaneous, and Rosa Parks and other activists had prepared to challenge segregation long in advance. On December 1, 1955, a tired Rosa L. Parks left the department store where she worked as a tailor’s assistant and boarded a crowded city bus for the ride home.
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