1. Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was an American activist in the civil rights movement.
106 Facts About Rosa Parks
1. 2.
Rosa Parks is best known for her refusal to move from her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus, in defiance of Jim Crow laws, which sparked the Montgomery bus boycott.
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Rosa Parks is sometimes known as the "mother of the civil rights movement".
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Rosa Parks faced both financial hardship and health problems as a result of her participation in the boycott, and in 1957, she relocated to Detroit, Michigan.
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Rosa Parks continued to advocate for civil rights, providing support for individuals such as John Conyers, Joanne Little, Gary Tyler, Angela Davis, Joe Madison, and Nelson Mandela.
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Rosa Parks was a supporter of the Black power movement and an anti-apartheid activist, participating in protests and conferences as part of the Free South Africa Movement.
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Rosa Parks received many awards and honors, both throughout her life and posthumously.
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Rosa Parks received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a Congressional Gold Medal, and was the first Black American to be memorialized in the National Statuary Hall.
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Rosa Parks is portrayed in many accounts as a quiet, dignified "heroine" whose singular act of defiance inspired change, both in Montgomery and across the United States.
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Some are critical of the ways that Rosa Parks's legacy has been appropriated to serve specific historical and political narratives.
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Rosa Parks was born Rosa Louise McCauley on February 4,1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama.
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Rosa Parks's mother, Leona, was a teacher from Pine Level, Alabama.
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Rosa Parks's father, James McCauley, was a carpenter and mason from Abbeville, Alabama.
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Rosa Parks's name was a portmanteau of her maternal and paternal grandmothers' names: Rose and Louisa.
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Rosa Parks learned quilting and sewing from her mother, completing her first quilt at age 10 and her first dress at 11.
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Rosa Parks attended the African Methodist Episcopal church, a century-old independent Black denomination founded by free Blacks in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the early nineteenth century.
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Acts of racist violence were widespread, with the Ku Klux Klan intensifying its activity both in Pine Level and across the United Statesafter the end of World War I Parks later recalled that she "heard of a lot of black people being found dead" under mysterious circumstances during her childhood.
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Rosa Parks initially attended school in a one-room schoolhouse at the local Mount Zion AME church.
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Rosa Parks then attended a laboratory school set up by the Alabama State Teachers College for Negroes, but dropped out to care for her ailing grandmother and mother.
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In 1931, Rosa was introduced to her future husband, Raymond Parks, by a mutual friend.
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Rosa Parks was initially "[not] very interested in him" because of "some unhappy romantic experiences" and because of his light skin.
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However, Raymond eventually persuaded Rosa Parks to ride with him in his car.
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Rosa Parks described Raymond as the "first real activist" she had met, admiring his opposition to racial prejudice.
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In 1933, Rosa Parks completed her high school education with encouragement from Raymond.
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The base was fully integrated, and Rosa Parks was able to take public transit alongside her white coworkers on-base.
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Rosa Parks began attending meetings of the Montgomery chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in 1943 after seeing a picture of a former classmate of hers, Johnnie Carr, at a meeting.
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Rosa Parks later explained that she accepted the role because "[she] was the only woman there, and they needed a secretary, and [she] was too timid to say no".
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Rosa Parks organized support for Jeremiah Reeves, who was accused of raping a white woman in 1952.
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Rosa Parks later reflected that her experience at Highlander provided her with a vision of a unified, integrated society, marking the first time in her adult life that she witnessed "people of all races and backgrounds" interacting harmoniously.
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Rosa Parks refused, telling Blake that she was "already on the bus and didn't see the need of getting off and getting back on when people were standing in the stepwell".
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Rosa Parks admonished Blake, saying that he "better not hit [her]".
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At 5:00pm on December 1,1955, Rosa Parks left work and purchased several items from Lee's Cut-Rate Drug before walking to Court Square to wait for her bus.
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Rosa Parks later stated that if she had noticed Blake, she would not have boarded.
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Rosa Parks paid her fare and went to sit in the middle section of the bus, next to a Black man and across from two Black women.
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Rosa Parks considered physically resisting, but decided against it, as she "didn't have any way of fighting back".
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Two officers arrived on the scene, and, at the insistence of Blake, arrested Rosa Parks for violating the Montgomery municipal code.
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Rosa Parks was then taken to the city jail, where she was fingerprinted and photographed.
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Rosa Parks pleaded "not guilty," and while she did not testify, two witnesses corroborated that there were seats available when she refused to move.
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The presiding judge permitted the change, and Rosa Parks was found guilty of violating state law.
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Rosa Parks, hailed by King as a "heroine", asked if she should address the crowd, who repeatedly encouraged her to speak.
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The decision to not have Rosa Parks speak has been interpreted by some as reflecting gender inequality within the civil rights movement.
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Rosa Parks might have talked about the loneliness of her stand on Thursday and the power of walking together on Monday.
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Rosa Parks might have thanked them for turning her individual refusal into a collective protest.
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Rosa Parks might have said that this movement was a long time in coalescing, but what a joyful and holy day it was now that it had come.
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Rosa Parks served temporarily as a dispatcher, coordinating transportation within the MIA's ride-sharing system.
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Rosa Parks was ostracized by her coworkers at Montgomery Fair, where she worked as a seamstress.
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Rosa Parks developed severe health problems, including chronic insomnia, stomach ulcers, and a heart condition.
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Rosa Parks declined, citing the school's location in Tennessee and concerns about potential reprisals if she were to speak in Alabama, Mississippi, or Louisiana.
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Rosa Parks disagreed with King and the emerging Southern Christian Leadership Conference regarding their impending airport desegregation campaign.
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Tensions between King and Nixon caused a rift in the MIA, with Rosa Parks taking Nixon's side.
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Rosa Parks managed the treasury at the PCL's credit union while Raymond served as the meeting hall's caretaker.
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Rosa Parks received donations from the MIA and PCL, and the Black press began to write about her financial difficulties.
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Rosa Parks was an honorary member of the SCLC, and periodically attended meetings, including the 1962 SCLC convention in Birmingham.
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Rosa Parks said of the event that it was "a great occasion, but women were not allowed to play much of a role".
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Rosa Parks played a critical role in John Conyers's 1964 congressional campaign.
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Rosa Parks persuaded King, who was generally reluctant to endorse local candidates, to appear with Conyers, boosting the novice candidate's profile.
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Rosa Parks attended the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches, joined the Lowndes County Freedom Organization, and supported the Freedom Now Party.
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Rosa Parks was an admirer of Nation of Islam spokesman Malcolm X and "armed self defense" advocate Robert F Williams, befriending Williams after his return from China, where he had been invited to visit by Chairman Mao Zedong.
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Rosa Parks took part in the Black power movement, attending the Philadelphia Black power conference in 1968.
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Rosa Parks continued to support the Black power movement throughout the 1970s, attending the National Black Political Convention in Gary, Indiana in 1972.
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Rosa Parks advocated for political prisoners, playing a key role in the establishment of the Detroit chapter of the Joanne Little Defense Committee.
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Rosa Parks organized on behalf of Gary Tyler, who was wrongfully convicted of shooting of a 13-year-old white boy while being attacked by a group of white segregationists.
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Additionally, Rosa Parks advocated for the Wilmington 10 and RNA 11 and spoke in support of Angela Davis, introducing her to a crowd of 12,000 as a "dear sister who has endured significant persecution" following Davis's acquittal in the kidnapping and murder case of Judge Harold Haley.
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Rosa Parks continued to experience health problems throughout the 1970s, and was injured several times after falling on ice.
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Rosa Parks experienced personal losses, with Raymond dying of throat cancer in 1977 and her brother Sylvester dying of stomach cancer soon after.
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Rosa Parks learned of the death of Fannie Lou Hamer, once a close friend, from a newspaper, lamenting that Hamer was "dead quite before [she] knew of it", and that "no one mentioned it to [her]".
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Rosa Parks participated in the Free South Africa Movement, which opposed apartheid in South Africa.
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Rosa Parks supported Jesse Jackson's 1984 and 1988 presidential campaigns.
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Rosa Parks worked extensively with radio host and NAACP activist Joe Madison during the 1980s.
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Madison and Rosa Parks unsuccessfully ran for president and vice president of the NAACP's Detroit chapter in 1985.
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Rosa Parks served on the Board of Advocates for Planned Parenthood.
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In 1990, at a Washington, DC gala celebrating her birthday, Rosa Parks gave a speech calling for the release of anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela.
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Rosa Parks attended the 1994 meeting of the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America in Detroit alongside Jesse Jackson and Queen Mother Moore.
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Rosa Parks was robbed and assailed in her home on August 30,1994, at age 81.
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Later, in 2002, Rosa Parks received an eviction notice from her $1,800 per month apartment for non-payment of rent.
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Rosa Parks was incapable of managing her own financial affairs by this time due to age-related physical and mental decline.
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Rosa Parks's rent was paid from a collection taken by Hartford Memorial Baptist Church in Detroit.
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Rosa Parks died of natural causes in her home on October 24,2005, at the age of 92.
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Rosa Parks's remains were flown to Montgomery for a public viewing and funeral service.
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Representative Conyers introduced Concurrent Resolution 61, which received Senate approval on October 29,2005, allowing Rosa Parks's remains to lie in state at the United States Capitol rotunda from October 30 to October 31.
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Rosa Parks's remains were transported to the rotunda by the United States National Guard.
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Rosa Parks was the 31st individual, and the second private citizen, to be laid in state.
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Rosa Parks received numerous awards as a result of her contributions to the civil rights movement.
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Rosa Parks received the Candace Award in 1984 from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women.
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In 1992, Rosa Parks received the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award.
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Rosa Parks was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1993, with her statue being displayed in the National Statuary Hall.
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Rosa Parks received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest award a civilian can receive from the United States executive branch, from Bill Clinton in 1996.
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Later, in 1999, Rosa Parks was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal with unanimous Senate approval despite opposition in the House from Representative Ron Paul.
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In 2000, Rosa Parks received both the Alabama Governor's Medal of Honor and the Alabama Academy Award.
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The bus on which Rosa Parks refused to move was restored with funding from the Save America's Treasures program and placed on display at The Henry Ford museum in 2003.
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Rosa Parks was the first Black American to receive this honor.
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On February 1, Obama proclaimed February 4,2013, as the "100th Anniversary of the Birth of Rosa Parks", calling "upon all Americans to observe this day with appropriate service, community, and education programs to honor Rosa Parks's enduring legacy".
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In 2014, a statue of Rosa Parks was dedicated at the Essex Government Complex in Newark, New Jersey.
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Also in 2018, Continuing the Conversation, a public sculpture of Rosa Parks, was unveiled on the main campus of Georgia Tech.
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In 2021, a bust of Rosa Parks was added to the Oval Office when Joe Biden began his presidency.
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Many popular narratives surrounding Rosa Parks portray her as a heroine, with Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist claiming that Rosa Parks's refusal to move was "not an intentional attempt to change a nation, but a singular act aimed at restoring the dignity of the individual".
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Rosa Parks argues that Parks's actions, driven by "values and integrity", served as a powerful catalyst for change, inspiring both a city and a nation to confront their systemic injustices.
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Rosa Parks describes the "quiet" portrayal of Parks as a "gendered caricature", contending that interviewers misinterpreted her words in an attempt to form their own narratives around Parks.
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Rosa Parks contends that Parks was relegated to gendered roles in the movement, and that her refusal to move was framed within a narrative of female vulnerability.
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Browder's son maintained that Rosa Parks's prominence had overshadowed his mother's contributions, leaving her role largely unrecognized.
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In 1999, Rosa Parks filmed a cameo appearance for the television series Touched by an Angel.
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Rosa Parks was played by Iris Little-Thomas in the 2001 film Boycott, directed by Clark Johnson, and by Angela Bassett in the 2002 biopic The Rosa Parks Story, directed by Julie Dash.
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Rosa Parks was the subject of the short documentary film Mighty Times: The Legacy of Rosa Parks, which was nominated for Best Documentary Short Film at the 75th Academy Awards.
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Rosa Parks herself boycotted the 2003 NAACP Image Awards ceremony, which Cedric hosted.
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The episode was received positively, with many online commenters determining that "the writers hadn't undermined the legacy of Rosa Parks", according to commentary from the BBC.
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In 1998, Parks filed a $5 billion lawsuit against American hip-hop duo Outkast and their record company claiming that the duo's song "Rosa Parks", released on their 1998 album Aquemini, used her name without permission, harming her reputation.