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Rosa Parkes

Rosa McCauley was born in Tuskegee, Alabama, on 4th February,

1913 !hen Rosa was a chil" her mother, #eona McCauley, se$arate"%rom her husban" an" mo&e" to Montgomery McCauley was a schoolteacher an" encourage" her "aughter to be acti&e in the struggle %orci&il rights

'n 193( Rosa marrie" a barber, Raymon" Parks )oth were memberso% the *ational Association %or the A"&ancement o% Coloure" Peo$le +*AACP an" Rosa ser&e" as the secretary o% the Montgomerycha$ter -urng this $erio" she became close %rien"s with Phili$Ran"ol$h , ."gar *i/on an" .lla )aker These acti&ists worke" within arange o% "i%%erent organi0ations This inclu"e" the Congress o% Racial. uality +C2R. .stablishe" in 194(, by a grou$ o% stu"ents inChicago , members were mainly $aci%ists who ha" been "ee$lyin%luence" by enry -a&i" Thoreau an" the teachings o% Mahatmaan"hi an" the non&iolent ci&il "isobe"ience cam$aign that he use"success%ully against )ritish rule in 'n"ia The stu"ents becamecon&ince" that the same metho"s coul" be em$loye" by blacks toobtain ci&il rights in America

'n early 1945, C2R. announce" $lans to sen" eight white an" eightblack men into the -ee$ 6outh to test the 6u$reme Court ruling that"eclare" segregation in interstate tra&el unconstitutional organi0e" byeorge ouser an" )ayar" Rustin , the 7ourney o% Reconciliation wasto be a two week $ilgrimage through 8irginia, *orth Carolina,Tennessee an" entucky

The 7ourney o% Reconciliation began on 9th A$ril, 1945 The teaminclu"e" eorge ouser , )ayar" Rustin , 7ames Peck , 'gal Roo"enko,*athan !right, Conra" #ynn, !allace *elson, An"rew 7ohnson,.ugene 6tanley, -ennis )anks, !illiam !orthy, #ouis A"ams, 7ose$hFelmet, !orth Ran"le an" omer 7ack

Members o% the 7ourney o% Reconciliation team were arreste" se&eraltimes 'n *orth Carolina, two o% the A%rican Americans, )ayar" Rustin an" An"rew 7ohnson, were %oun" guilty o% &iolating the state:s 7imCrow bus statute an" were sentence" to thirty "ays on a chain gangowe&er, 7u"ge enry !hit%iel" ma"e it clear he %oun" that beha&iouro% the white men e&en more ob;ectionable e tol" 'gal Roo"enko an"7ose$h Felmet< ='t:s about time you 7ews %rom *ew >ork learne" thatyou can:t come "own her bringing your niggers with you to u$set thecustoms o% the 6outh 7ust to teach you a lesson, ' ga&e your blackboys thirty "ays, an" ' gi&e you ninety =

'n Montgomery, like most towns in the -ee$ 6outh, buses weresegregate" Rosa Parks an" other ci&il rights acti&ists consi"ere" using

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these tactics in Montgomery owe&er, un"er $ressure %rom the*AACP , this ne&er took $lace Thurgoo" Marshall , hea" o% the*AACP:s legal "e$artment, was strongly against these tactics an"warne" that a ="isobe"ience mo&ement on the $art o% *egroes an"their white allies, i% em$loye" in the 6outh, woul" result in wholesale

slaughter with no goo" achie&e" =

'n early 19??, Clau"ette Col&in, a 1? year ol" black girl was "ragge" o%%a bus in Montgomery an" arreste" %or not gi&ing u$ her seat to a white$erson The *AACP now agree" to take u$ the Col&in inci"ent as a testcase 't belie&e" that this woul" result in a similar outcome to the 19?46u$reme Court "ecision on segregation in e"ucation owe&er, the*AACP "eci"e" to "ro$ the i"ea when they "isco&ere" that Col&in was$regnant They knew that the authorities in Montgomery woul" use thisagainst them in the $ro$agan"a war that woul" ine&itably take $lace"uring this legal battle

2n 1st -ecember, 19??, Rosa Parks, le%t Montgomery Fair, the"e$artment store where she worke", an" got on the same bus as she"i" e&ery night As always she sat in the =black section= at the back o%the bus owe&er, when the bus became %ull, the "ri&er instructe" Rosato gi&e u$ her seat to a white $erson This ha" ha$$ene" to Rosase&eral times be%ore 'n %act, the same bus "ri&er ha" %orce" her o%% thebus in 1943 %or committing the same o%%ence 2nce again she re%use"an" was arreste" by the $olice 6he was %oun" guilty o% &iolating thesegregation law an" %ine"

't was only at this stage, a%ter consulting %rien"s an" %amily, that she"eci"e" to a$$roach the *AACP an" &olunteer to become a test caseThis was a bra&e "ecision as she knew it woul" result in $ersecution bythe white authorities For e/am$le, Parks was imme"iately sacke" %romher tailoring ;ob with Montgomery Fair

Martin #uther ing , a $astor at the local )a$tist Church, agree" to hel$organi0e $rotests against bus segregation 't was "eci"e" that %rom ?th-ecember, black $eo$le in Montgomery woul" re%use to use the busesuntil $assengers were com$letely integrate" ing was arreste" an" his

house was %ire@bombe" ."gar *i/on su%%ere" the same %ate 2thersin&ol&e" in the Montgomery )us )oycott also ha" to en"ureharassment an" intimi"ation, but the $rotest continue"

For thirteen months the 15, black $eo$le in Montgomery walke" towork or obtaine" li%ts %rom the small car@owning black $o$ulation o% thecity .&entually, the loss o% re&enue an" a "ecision by the 6u$remeCourt %orce" the Montgomery )us Com$any to acce$t integration, an"the boycott came to an en" on ( th -ecember, 19?B A%ter the successo% this cam$aign, Parks became known as the =mother o% the Ci&ilRights Mo&ement=

Rosa an" her %amily were now targets %or white racists an" in 19?5 the

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%amily "eci"e" to mo&e to -etroit #ater she became a s$ecial assistantto -emocratic Congressman, 7ohn Conyers

Rosa remaine" acti&e in the *ational Association %or the A"&ancemento% Coloure" Peo$le an" in 19 5 she %oun"e" the Rosa an" Raymon"

Parks 'nstitute %or 6el%@-e&elo$ment, which aime" to hel$ the youngan" e"ucate them about ci&il rights The 6outhern Christian #ea"ershi$Con%erence +6C#C also establishe" an annual Rosa Parks Free"om

Awar" er autobiogra$hy, Rosa Parks: My Story , was $ublishe" in199(

Rosa Parks "ie" on (4th 2ctober, ( ?

Rosa Parks having her fingerprints takenafter her arrest on 1st December, 1955.

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