On Dec. 1, 1955, Rosa Parks quietly sat in her assigned seat on Montgomery City Bus No. 2857 in Montgomery, Alabama to stand up for her civil rights. She was not physically tired when the bus driver told her to give up her seat. She was tired of inequality simply because of the color of her skin. Her peaceful action of intransigence was louder than 1,000 words. Her action sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott and eventually, an end to Jim Crow laws and passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
In 2018, Student News Net hosted a symposium featuring Douglas Brinkley, author of Rosa Parks: A Life (2000). He wrote the book because he identified a gap in a definitive biography of Rosa Parks, the mother of the Civil Rights Movement. The book is well-researched and a gift to history for present and future generations to walk in Rosa’s steps as she tirelessly fought for herself and others her entire life.
Rosa Parks and her husband, Raymond, moved to Detroit, Michigan, in 1957 where she worked for many years in the Detroit office helping constituents of Rep. John Conyers who represented the state of Michigan in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1965 until his death in 2019. Rosa retired in 1988. She died on Oct. 24, 2005, at the age of 95.
The following are links to video of Dr. Brinkley’s presentation at the 2018 Student News Net symposium.
Part 1: Douglas Brinkley at the 2018 Student News Net symposium
Parts 2 and 3: Douglas Brinkley at the 2018 Student News Net symposium
