Born Rosa Louise McCauley on February 4th, 1913, Rosa Parks died earlier this week at the age of 92, due to natural causes. Rosa Parks was often called the "mother of the civil rights movement." She earned this title in the latter months of the year 1955, when she committed an act of rebellion. Little did she know, this act would lead to much greater things, and ultimately change history.
On December 1st, 1955, Rosa Parks was riding the bus home from a long and tiresome day at work. When a white man demanded her seat, she refused to get up and move, despite Jim Crow laws stating the separation of races. Two women had also been arrested on this charge prior to this, but Rosa was then jailed and fined $14.
After her arrest, a 381 day boycott against the bus system was organized by Martin Luther king Jr.,
English: Photograph of Rosa Parks with Dr. Martin ...
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Crowds surrounding the Reflecting Pool, during the...who was fairly unknown at the time. This boycott marked the start of the modern civil rights movement, which ended in 1964 with the federal Civil Rights Act. This banned racial discrimination in public places.
After her stand for civil rights, Rosa Parks was receiving continuous threats and harassment, and had trouble finding work. She along with her husband, decided to move to Detroit in 1957. She found a job as in aide in Conyer's Detroit office, where she worked until her retirement in 1988. Rosa Parks became an honored figure in Detroit, and even had a middle school and street named after her. After her retirement, she devoted much of her time to The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development, which introduces Detroit's youth into the struggle for civil rights, and helps develop leadership.
Between the years 1992 and 1996, Rosa Parks had 3 books published,