On February 4th of 1913, Rosa Parks was born. On December 1st, 1955, Rosa, a 42-year-old seamstress in Alabama, was riding the bus when a white man entered. Unable to find himself a seat in the whites-only section at the front of the bus, the driver told the four black people sitting in the first row of the black section to get up to make room for more white passengers. Three of them complied, but Rosa did not.
To deal with her refusal to move, two police officers boarded the bus and arrested her. This led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and ultimately to the Supreme Court’s decision to outlaw segregation in public transportation.
In Rosa’s autobiography, she said, “People always say that I didn’t give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn’t true. I was not tired physically. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.”
Thank you, Rosa, for not giving in. For standing your ground, or, in this case, not standing. You are a true heroine, and we are grateful to be able to honor you today.
