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Born
She was born in Tuskegee, Alabama. Rosa grew up in the southern United States in Alabama. Her mother was a teacher and her father a carpenter. She had a younger brother named Sylvester. -
School
Rosa's mother wanted her to get a high school education, but this wasn't easy for an African-American girl living in Alabama in the 1920s. After finishing up elementary school at Pine Level she attended the Montgomery Industrial School for Girls. Then she attended the Alabama State Teacher's College in order to try and get her high school diploma. Unfortunately, Rosa's education was cut short when her mother became very ill. Rosa left school to care for her mother. -
Married
A few years later Rosa met Raymond Parks. Raymond was a successful barber who worked in Montgomery. They married a year later in 1932. Rosa worked part time jobs and went back to school, finally earning her high school diploma. Something she was very proud of. -
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The movements of Rosa Parks.
Growing up Rosa had lived with racism in the south. She was scared of the members of the KKK who had burned down black school houses and churches. She also saw a black man get beaten by a white bus driver for getting in his way. The bus driver only had to pay a $24 fine. Rosa and her husband Raymond wanted to do something about it. They joined the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Rosa saw the opportunity to do something when the Freedom Train arrived in Montgomery. -
The bus incident.
It was on December 1, 1955 that Rosa made her famous stand (while sitting) on the bus. Rosa had settled in her seat on the bus after a hard day's work. All the seats on the bus had filled up when a white man boarded. The bus driver told Rosa and some other African-Americans to stand up. Rosa refused. The bus driver said he would call the police. Rosa didn't move. Soon the police showed up and Rosa was arrested. -
Rosa was arrested
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat for a white male and was arrested.
"As far back as I knew there was something wrong with our way of life when people could be mistreated because of skin color." -
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Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Rosa was charged with breaking a segregation law and was told to pay a fine of $10. She refused to pay, saying that she was not guilty and that the law was illegal. She appealed to a higher court. That night a number of African-American leaders got together and decided to boycott the city buses. This meant that African-Americans would no longer ride the buses. The boycott continued for 381 days! Finally, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the segregation laws in Alabama were unconstitutional. -
After the Boycott.
Just because the laws were changed, things didn't get any easier for Rosa. She received many threats and feared for her life.Many of the civil rights leader's houses were bombed, including the home of Martin Luther King Jr. In 1957 Rosa and Raymond moved to Detroit, Michigan. Rosa Parks and Bill Clinton by Unknown Rosa continued to attend civil rights meetings. She became a symbol to many African-Americans of the fight for equal rights.She is still a symbol of freedom and equality to many today. -
Medal
The NAACP awarded Rosa Parks the spingarn medal. -
A Book
Rosa Parks my story autobiography was published in 1992.
"The only tiered i was, was tiered of giving up." -
The hate continues
Rosa Parks was attacked at her apartment by Joseph Skipper a drug addicted in August 30th 1994 -
Another medal
In September 9th 1996 Bill Clinton awarded Rosa Parks the presidential medal of freedom -
Death
In 2004, Rosa was diagnosed with progressive dementia and died the following year on October 24, 2005. Three days after Rosa’s death, all of the city buses in Montgomery and Detroit reserved their front seats with black ribbons in her honor, and remained this way until Rosa was put into her final resting place. The journey to the cemetery was a long one, one that recapped everything she stood for and believed in her whole life.
