Rosa Parks was an African-American human rights activist. She is an important figure in the civil rights movement in the United States. Rose is best known for her crucial role in the Montgomery bus boycott.
On December 1, 1955, Parks rejected to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger at the order of the driver James F. Blake in Montgomery, Alabama. The police arrested her immediately and were fined $15.
This episode triggered the movement that was called the Montgomery Bus Boycott. On November 13, 1956, The Supreme Court of the United States strikes down bus segregation laws and said it is unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Rosa Parks Facts
| Born | 4 February 1913, Tuskegee, Alabama, United States |
| Real name | Rosa Louise McCauley Parks |
| Nickname | The Mother of the Civil Rights Movement |
| Known For | Montgomery bus boycott |
| Age | 92 years Old (Age of Death) |
| Education | Montgomery Industrial School for Girls Alabama State Teachers College for Negroes Highlander Research and Education Center |
| Occupation | Civil Rights Activist and Political Activist |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | Scots-Irish-African Ancestry |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Husband | Raymond Parks (m. 1932–1977) |
| Parents | Father: James McCauley Mother: Leona McCauley |
| Siblings | Sylvester McCauley (Brother) |
| Death | 24 October 2005, Detroit, Michigan, United States |
| Burial | Woodlawn Cemetery, Detroit, Michigan, United States |
Rosa Parks Biography
Rosa Parks was born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama, The United Starts, as Rosa Louise McCauley. She was born into a poor Christian family. Rosa Park’s father’s name is James McCauley, who was a carpenter.
Rosa Park’s mother’s name is Leona McCauley, who was a teacher in high school. In addition, Rosa Parks Ethnicity was of Scots-Irish-African ancestry. When her parents separated, she moved with her mother to Pine Level, where she attended a rural school.
Rosa Parks had only one brother, whose name was Sylvester McCauley. Rosa Parks complete her early education at Montgomery Industrial School for Girls. Then, she attended Alabama State Teachers College for Negroes for secondary education.
With her grandmother’s illness and then her mother’s illness, Rosa was forced to drop out of school. She went on to work as a tailor to help with household expenses.
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Personal Life
Rosa Parks husband? On December 18, 1932, at the age of 19, Parks married Raymond Parkes, who was a barber by profession and a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Rosa Parks has never had children with her husband Raymond Parkes.
In 1933, on the advice of her husband, Parks graduated from the university. At that time, only 7% of blacks had a college education. She changed several jobs, including being a housekeeper and a nurse. During the year of the protests, she worked as a tailor. She was a faithful Christian and loved to read the Psalter.
Rosa Parks Nickname is “The Mother of the Civil Rights Movement” and “The First Lady of Civil Rights”, which is given by The United States Congress.
For her African-American human rights activism, she was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Congressional Gold Medal, and a posthumous statue in the United States Capitol’s National Statuary Hall.
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Bus Segregation Law
In Montgomery, capital of the state of Alabama, in the South of the United States, where the biggest racial conflicts in the country took place, since 1900, by law, the first seats on buses were reserved for white passengers.
On December 1, 1955, when Rosa was returning from work, she took one of these buses and sat in one of the seats located in the middle of the collective. When some whites got on the bus and stood up, the driver demanded that Rosa and three other blacks get up to make way for the whites.
