On This Day In History: Rosa Parks’ Act Of Defiance And The Montgomery Bus Boycott – On Dec 1, 1955

AncientPages.com - On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks disobeyed an order to give up her seat in the black section of the bus to a white passenger.

She was arrested and then challenged the arrest, her case leading to a protest and then a Supreme Court decision reversing segregation.

Rosa Parks statue by Eugene Daub (2013), in National Statuary Hall, United States Capitol.  Image source - AOC / USCapitol - http://www.aoc.gov/capitol-hill/other-statues/rosa-parks /-Public Domain

Today, this woman's name symbolizes courage to stand against oppression. Rosa and her husband were active members of the National Association for Advancement of Colored People and other civil-rights organizations

She was college-educated and well aware of her actions' personal and general consequences. But she also knew that the driver who ordered her to give up her seat that day was the same who had forced her off the bus in humiliation years before. This time, she decided, it would be different.

The system in place in public buses at the time of Parks' famous ride forbade white and black passengers from sharing a bench.

The first four rows of seats on each Montgomery bus were reserved for Whites. Buses had "colored" sections for Black people, generally in the rear of the bus, although Blacks composed more than 75% of the ridership. The sections were not fixed but were determined by the placement of a movable sign. Black people could sit in the middle rows until the White section filled. If more Whites needed seats, Blacks were to move to seats in the rear, stand, or leave the bus if there was no room.

Parks' act of defiance and the Montgomery Bus Boycott became important symbols of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States and helped launch nationwide efforts to end segregation of public facilities.

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