Rosa Parks, a name synonymous with courage and resilience, left an indelible mark on the pages of history through her unwavering commitment to justice. Born into a segregated society in 1913, Parks defied the odds and rose to prominence as a central figure in the Civil Rights Movement. Her refusal to surrender her seat on a Montgomery bus in 1955 sparked a wave of protest that reverberated across the nation, igniting the flames of change and paving the way for a more just and equitable society. Now we explore Rosa Parks year by year:
1913:
Rosa Louise McCauley is born on February 4th, in Tuskegee, Alabama. She was born to James McCauley, a carpenter, and Leona Edwards, a teacher. In addition to African ancestry, one of Park’s great-grandfathers was Scots-Irish, and one of her great-grandmothers was a Native American slave.
1915:
Rosa’s parents separated, she moved with her mother to her grandparents’ farm outside Pine Level, where her younger brother Sylvester was born.
1919:
Rosa’s mother taught her sewing, as her mother and grandmother were making quilts.
1925:
Rosa studied in Industrial School for Girls in Montgomery; she took academic and vocational courses.
1928:
As Rosa’s school closed in 1928, she transferred to Booker T. Washington Junior High School for her final year.
1929:
At the age of 16, she was forced to leave school because of an illness in the family, and she began cleaning the houses of white people.
1932:
On December 18, at age 19, Rosa married Raymond Parks, a barber and an active member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), who encouraged her to finished her education and earn a diploma.
1943:
Rosa Parks becomes actively involved in civil rights issues, joining the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP. She serves as the chapter’s secretary and becomes well-versed in the strategies of nonviolent protest.
1955:
On December 1st, Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat to a white passenger on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama. Her arrest sparks the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a pivotal event in the Civil Rights Movement. Martin Luther King, Jr. had been brought to national attention by his organization of the Montgomery bus boycott. The boycott was lasted for 381 days, until the United States Supreme Court ruled that segregation on public buses was unconstitutional.
1956:
In November 13, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision declaring Montgomery’s segregated bus seating was unconstitutional and a court order to integrate the buses was served on December 20.
In December 21, the boycott ended. After the successful campaign, Parks became known as the “mother of the civil rights movement.”
1957:
Rosa Parks and her husband move to Detroit, Michigan, seeking a safer environment and better opportunities. She continues her activism by working for Congressman John Conyers Jr. and serving on the board of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
1964:
Rosa Parks became a deaconess in the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME).
1987:
Rosa Parks co-founded the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self-Development to motivate and inspire young people.
1992:
Rosa Parks published her autobiography, “Rosa Parks: My Story.” which provides insight into her life and activism.
1996:
President Bill Clinton awarded Rosa Parks the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honour for a civilian in the United States.
1997:
Rosa Parks became the first living person to be honoured with a holiday. In that year the first Monday following February 4, was celebrated as “Mrs Rosa Parks’ Day” in the state of Michigan, her home state.
1999:
Rosa Parks got Congressional Gold Medal.
2005:
Rosa Parks passed away on October 24th at the age of 92 in Detroit, Michigan. She was the first woman and second black parson to lie in honour at the Capitol Rotunda (an honour reserved for private citizens who performed a great service for their country) in Washington, D.C.