Originally Posted By Inspector 57 It was in 1955 that, when ordered to give up her seat because a white man had boarded the bus, she simply slid over to the window into the space that another black person had abandoned. 50 years. Things have changed so much since then, and so little. Her contribution to human rights wasn't just the act of civil disobedience that caused the Supreme Court to change the laws of the country. She went on to become a gentle but dedicated fighter for equality. Her single brave action had an immeasurable impact on our society. Equally impressively, she lived afterward as a gracious, generous, articulate, passionate, and effective advocate for what was right. Thank you, Rosa Parks.
Originally Posted By cmpaley Grant eternal rest unto her, O Lord, and may all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
Originally Posted By Jafar30 And it's a shame that there really isn't a Rosa Parks for any group you want to name. Be it a conservative christian group, a gay rights group, or an African-American group. Today it's nothing but special interests, petty bickering and name calling. We could have used a few more Rosa Parks' in our lives these past twenty years.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 They are out there Jafar they just don't get the publicity like the examples you listed. Rosa Parks was an amazing, brave, courageous woman. She has always been an inspiration to me. I remember studying about her in school and reading various books, articles and newsclips about her. She not only stood up for what she believe in as a young woman, but also as an elder she stood up when her name and the civil rights movement was being used in a disrespectful way a few years ago. She was always a beacon of light. Rest in peace Mrs. Parks.
Originally Posted By Jafar30 <<Rosa Parks was an amazing, brave, courageous woman. >> Of course if you've seen Barbershop that statement may be disputed.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 Yeah, I seen it. She took a stance against that too. Amongst other things.
Originally Posted By jdub She's got to be just about the most major historical figure still alive into my adulthood--not sure I was ready for this. Of course, even back then when she launched the Montgomery bus boycott, she was not young. Just brave. Here's to more of us finding that strength within ourselves.
Originally Posted By DZNYRUS Shoulda known I would find a tribute to a classy lady like Rosa Parks in here with all of my classy Disny Fan Friends. Rest in Peace Rosa, thanks for all you did for everybody. Not budging from your seat was a trailblazing thing to do for the black people, but THANK GOD you opened the eyes of many others as well.
Originally Posted By itsme >>Not budging from your seat was a trailblazing thing to do for the black people, but THANK GOD you opened the eyes of many others as well. -------- Interesting point. Which was the bigger outcome? Getting white people to notice and think or giving black people the feeling of being equal.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 <Not to mention she inspired a pretty cool Outkast song.> A nice Neville Bros. song too. Mrs. Parks was a true heroine, and an inspiration to so many, inside and outside of the black civil rights movement. "I only knew that, as I was being arrested, that it was the very last time that I would ever ride in humiliation of this kind." Refusing to acquiesce in one's own unequal treatment can be a difficult first step to take - but once taken it is profound and changes everything. I also love this other quote from Mrs. Parks, "As long as there is unemployment, war, crime and all things that go to the infliction of man's inhumanity to man, regardless -- there is much to be done, and people need to work together." Rest in peace, Mrs. Parks.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan >>Refusing to acquiesce in one's own unequal treatment can be a difficult first step to take - but once taken it is profound and changes everything.<< It's hard to imagine now how brave her seemingly simple act of defiance was. I listened to her recount the day that she refused to give up her seat. It sounded like she'd worked all day, and had had it, and said enough is enough, not like she woke up that day and decided to change the world. >>There were other black women in Montgomery who were arrested in 1955 for violating the segregated busing policy. But this time, the black community fought back in force. The NAACP had been looking for a test case to challenge segregated busing and Parks agreed to let the group take her case. Parks lost her job and had trouble finding work in Alabama after her public stance. She and her husband moved to Detroit. For many years she worked as an aide to Congressman John Conyers, and she remained a committed activist. In the 1980s, she worked in the anti-apartheid movement and also opened a career counseling center for black youth in Detroit. She received numerous awards and in 1999, President Clinton presented her with the nation's highest civilian honor, a Congressional Gold Medal. "We must never ever, when this ceremony is over, forget about the power of ordinary people to stand in the fire for the cause of human dignity," Clinton said.<< from www.npr.org (you can hear her tell the story in her own words there, too.)
Originally Posted By JohnS1 Maybe it's just me, because I write for a living, but I have this really strange craving to follow the story of someone else based on Rosa Parks' reputation. After hearing and reading a dozen or so headlines today about how she was told to get out of her seat so a "white man" could take it, I have this unbelievable craving to learn more about the "white man." Who was he? What was his life like before and after this incident? What were his views on Rosa's right to sit there? Was he ever involved in any way with a court fight, or testifying or making statements to the press? Wouldn't it make a fascinating book or movie to trace the life and reactions of the "white man" who has been this nameless, faceless, symbol of villainy all these years?
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan I guess it would be interesting to know if the bus driver or the nameless white passenger ever modified their views over time. But Rosa Parks' story is very compelling and a catalyst for so much that happened after that moment. From www.time.com: >>Montgomery's segregation laws were complex: blacks were required to pay their fare to the driver, then get off and reboard through the back door. Sometimes the bus would drive off before the paid-up customers made it to the back entrance. If the white section was full and another white customer entered, blacks were required to give up their seats and move farther to the back; a black person was not even allowed to sit across the aisle from whites. These humiliations were compounded by the fact that two-thirds of the bus riders in Montgomery were black.<< I think there need to be more stories told from people who lived through that time. I'd be interested to read, in particular, about other black people and the newfound sense of hope and empowerment Rosa parks and others gave them. How did it affect black people who for years adopted or were forced into a sort of go-along to get-along mentalty to see other black people taking a stand? Empowering? Inspiring? Or fearful and threatened? There have been good movies like Mississippi Burning about that era, but more often than not, they feature stories about white people fighting for the rights of blacks.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 When you visit the MLK memorial they have this terrific video/DVD playing about what type of organization, planning and sacrafices Black people made to conduct the bus boycott. I wish I knew the name of it. It was very uplifting. It literally took the whole community to do this. There were several "heroes" within this campaign. People with little money who rode others on bikes, in wagons etc to get them to their jobs by any other means but the bus. Fascinating stuff. Those people should be honored too, I bet their lives would be interesting to trace also.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 "Eyes on the Prize" was also an excellent series, with most of one program devoted to the bus boycott. I taped it at the time, but I imagine it must be available on DVD.
Originally Posted By RAM1984 Today at church we had a soloist sing a tribute to Ms Parks. It was beautiful and very moving but through the whole thing what kept going through my mind was, "She had to break the law." I was only three at the time but I can remember my parents' reaction. (They were always civil rights activists.) Through the years as I have told stories to my children and students about how not only were there gross injustices at that time but that there were actually laws to protect them they often do not believe me. I think that says something positive about how things have changed. We all need champions to bring us together; someone to get behind and say,"Hey! why didn't I think of that?" Blessings to Rosa.
Originally Posted By kennect The one thing I didn't realize was the fact that this happened in 1955...For some reason in my head I thought it was much later in terms of years....I have known this story all of my life but it has taken some time for me to understand how really important this was....I am from the south and I am so horribly ashamed of things that have happened here in my lifetime....I will be forever ticked off that I was born into a segregated society...It is something I will never be able to forget...I am no better than you and you are no better than me, regardless of race....We are all the same...Basic human beings...Was that so hard to understand?
