Rosa Parks Essay, Research Paper

Rosa Parks

Rosa Parks is an extraordinary person because she stood up against racism and

stood up for herself. It was even harder for her because she is a woman, and in

those days, things were much harder for woman. Rosa Parks hated the ways of her

life. She had always dreamed of having freedom in her life. As she grew up, she

went through different experiences that gave her courage and strength.

One day, Rosa Parks had so much courage and strength that when her bus arrived

to pick her up, she got on the bus, put her money in the slot, and sat in the

front of the bus. Black people were supposed to sit in the back. The bus driver

told her to move to the back, but she just sat there and refused to move. The

driver called the police and they arrested Rosa Parks. The next day, Raymond

Parks went to pick up Rosa from jail. When they got home, Rosa spoke about her

time in jail. She had stood up to get a drink of water and the guard told her

the drinking fountain was only for white people. This made her furious.

On December 5, 1955 Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr. and JoAnn Robinson

looked out of their windows, and stood on street corners watching all of the

yellow buses drive by. There were hardly any black riders since Rosa Park’s

arrest. It was a miracle. People stopped riding the buses all because of Rosa

Parks.

Soon, the police were informed of the people standing on the street corners

watching the buses drive by. The police watched the streets to make sure that

the black people were not bothering the other bus riders. They tried guarding

the bus stops. The police failed and the boycott was a success. A few months

later, Rosa Parks once again started to climb aboard a bus. She stopped when she

noticed a sign that read, “People don’t ride the bus today. Don’t ride the bus

for freedom.”

Finally the rules for riding the buses were changed. 1. Black and white people

could sit wherever they wanted to sit. 2. Bus drivers were to respect all riders.

3. Black people were now allowed to apply for driver positions.

A lot of people wrote hate mail to Rosa Parks. Some people called and threatened

her and her family. She and her family were scared. They knew they were in

serious danger, but, Rosa Parks would not give up. Rosa Parks became a great

hero.

In 1979, Rosa Parks received the Spingarn medal. In 1980, at the 25th

anniversary celebration of the bus Boycott, Rosa Parks was awarded the Martin

Luther King, Jr. nonviolent-peace prize. In 1984, Rosa Parks was given the

Eleanor Roosevelt Woman of Courage award. Rosa Parks is known as a national hero

and as a shy girl who stood up against racism and fought for freedom.