The history of civil rights movement in America cannot be discussed without mentioning the incredible Rosa Parks, the woman who stood up for her rights by sitting down, by refusing to vacate her seat on a bus for white passengers. Rosa Parks action would later result to a boycott of Montgomery buses by the black community and the eventual abolition of segregation laws in the United States.
Here are 20 amazing facts about Rosa Parks:
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1.
Rosa Parks was born in Alabama on February 4th 1913. Her mother, Leona, was a teacher, and her father, James, was a carpenter.
2.
As a child, Rosa suffered poor health with a chronic tonsillitis, a condition which results to the enlargement of the tonsils.
3.
At a tender age of eleven, Rosa dropped out of school to take care of her sick grandmother and later her mother.
4.
In 1932, Rosa married a barber from Montgomery. They had no children.
5.
In December 1943, Rosa joined the NAACP, The National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People which was formed in 1909. She would later become its secretary.
6.
On December 1, 1995 in downtown Montgomery Rosa, while returning from work in the evening on a bus, refused to vacate her seat for some white people when the bus driver asked her to do so. Then, segregation laws were lawful in Montgomery.
7.
On December 2 1955, a day after refusing to give up her seat, Rosa was found guilty of disorderly conduct. She was fined $10 plus $4 in court costs. As expected, Rosa appealed the unfair judgement.
8.
Rosa Parks' courageous actions and eventual trial resulted to a boycott of the Montgomery buses by the members of the black community. The boycott lasted for 381 days until the segregation laws were abolished in Montgomery.
9.
The 1970s was a tough year for Rosa. She lost her beloved husband to throat cancer on August 19 1977. Less than three months later, she lost her brother and only sibling to cancer in November 1977.
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10.
In 1992, Rosa published her autobiography titled, *Rosa Parks: My Story.
11.
In 1990, Rosa was specially invited to be part of the group welcoming Nelson Mandela upon his release from prison in South Africa.
12.
In 1994, Parks was awarded a honorary doctorate degree from Soka University I'm Tokyo, Japan.
13.
Parks once received the *Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honour conferrable by the US executive branch.
14.
Time Magazine named Rosa Parks one of the 20 most influential and iconic figures of the 20th century.
15.
The US Congress named Rosa the first lady of civil rights and the mother of the freedom movement.
16.
At 81, Rosa was robbed and assaulted in her Detroit residence by a man named Joseph Skipper.
17.
On October 24 2005, Rosa died of natural causes in her residence in Detroit. She was aged 92.
18.
On October 30, 2005 President George W. Bush made a proclamation ordering all the US flags in public areas both within and outside the US to be flown at half staff to mark the funeral of Rosa Parks.
19.
Following her death, Rosa became the first woman and third US non government official to be given a state funeral.
20.
During his lifetime, the fearless Martin Luther king Jr. described Rosa Parks as one of the finest citizens of Montgomery -- not one of the Negro citizens, but one of the finest citizens of Montgomery.
*References
Britannica
History.com
Wikipedia
The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks by Jeanne Theoharis, Beacon Press, 2015, ISBN 9780807076927
Morris, Aldon (Summer 2012). "Rosa Parks, Strategic Activist (sidebar)"
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