Rosa Parks

Background

Rosa Louise McCauley Parks, known simply as Rosa Parks, was born on February 4, 1913, was an American civil rights activist famous for refusing to give up a seat for a white passenger, sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Her Zodiac sign was Aquarius, and her ethnicity was Afro-American. Parks’ parents were Rose and Silvester Edwards, who separated when Parks was only two years old. Parks’ grandparents were enslaved and were advocates of racial equality. In 1932 she got married to Raymond Parks who was a member of the N.A.A.C.P. She worked as a seamstress and they both became respected members of the African American community in Montgomery. For fear of her safety, her husband discouraged Parks from joining the Montgomery N.A.A.C.P. chapter, but Parks became the chapter’s secretary.

Parks became an active member of the Civil Rights movement in 1943. In 1955 Parks made history when she refused to give her seat on a bus to a white passenger. Two police officers arrested Parks for violating the Jim Crow laws. The word of her arrest spread first in Montgomery, and the black community planned a boycott of the buses. The act of defiance by Parks became a national symbol of the N.A.A.C.P. and she became a national icon of resistance to racial segregation. The court found her guilty and fined her $10 and $4. She challenged her conviction and appealed the legality of her sentence. Park dedicated her life to civil activism. In the 1970s, Parks further played a vital role in helping free political prisoners.

In the 1990s, Parks published an autobiography, “Rosa Parks: My story,” detailing her life as an activist. Parks was widowed in 1977 when her husband died of throat cancer. Similarly, her close friend by the name Fannie Lou Hamer died the same year and Parks learned about her death in the newspapers. In 1979 she lost her mother to cancer and geriatric dementia, at the age of 92. After she retired, she spent time attending various events and causes in her last years. Parks died at 92 following a long battle with illness.