Popularly known as the first lady of civil rights, Rosa Parks’ role in the history of civil rights, African American upliftment, and leadership are lessons that inspire people to this very day. In the current times, when we struggle to find ethical leaders across the globe, Rosa Parks’ story is a reminder that all that one needs is a little bit of courage to shine through.
Humble beginnings
Rosa Parks was born in Alabama in the year 1913. She was an African American and hence no stranger to racism and cultural bias that lingered in the society back then. Her father was a carpenter, and her mother was a teacher. Her great grandmothers were American slaves. She rose to fame when she denied passing on her seat to a white passenger on a Montgomery bus.
The early twentieth century saw a rise in racial segregation in public places. Racist groups like the Klu Klux Klan were popular and powerful. There were no separate school buses for black students, and their education also did not receive enough funding. Rosa Parks herself was a victim of bullying by the white children in her neighborhood.
Her small act of defiance to get up from her seat caused a city-wide furor, which led the authorities to take long-lasting steps to establish equality. After the incident took place, the city of Montgomery was forced to pass a new law that abolished the segregation of white passengers and others on public transport like buses.
The incident and her act of leadership
Rosa Parks was aged 42 when a life-altering incident took place. She was on her way back home after the day’s work when a white gentleman asked her to give up her seat. This was a time when the city of Montgomery followed segregation laws that did not allow black or African American citizens to sit with white citizens.
Despite her humble background, Rosa Parks stood her ground and did not budge. She was also later arrested for not giving up her seat for the white man. She broke the law but started a dialogue for a better standard of living and equal rights for the African American community.
Rosa Parks’ incident was not just limited to her. It also led several other African Americans and blacks around the world to be a part of a more reformed and inclusive society. She single-handedly led a boycott movement against the Montgomery city bus service that cost the latter thousands of dollars.
Her professional achievements
Rosa Parks worked at many places and donned many hats. She worked as domestic help, medical aid, and more. She was married to Raymond Parks, a barber, who encouraged her to finish high school. Upon her husband’s insistence, she graduated from high school, an achievement that only 7% of black women could boast of at the time.
When the Montgomery bus incident took place, she was working as a seamstress in a department store. However, she was soon fired from the job because of her act of defiance. In 1943, after she gained recognition for her heroic act, she joined the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). She worked as the secretary of the Montgomery chapter of the organization.
Rosa Parks never let the fear of being a minority get to her. She even received some death threats after she began the boycott movement, but nothing deterred her from changing her stance.
After the boycott, Rosa Parks and her husband left Montgomery and moved to Detroit in 1965. She spent the next 23 years as a receptionist and secretary to John Conyers. Conyers was an African American US representative. During this time, she also participated in various other social movements like Black Power. In addition to this, she worked for the support and betterment of black political prisoners in the United States.
She never held official leadership appointments, but that did not come in the way of leadership skills. Rosa Parks was born to lead, and she did that not in the capacity of someone running an office, but as an ordinary citizen, living life on their own terms and carving a new path for others to follow. Her resoluteness made her an iconic personality in the history of America. She proved that simple acts could lead to life-altering changes, not just for an individual but an entire community.
Retirement and old age
Rosa Parks wrote her own autobiography when she retired, which gives an insight into her life, values, and achievements. She also finally received the appreciation and admiration that she deserved in the form of awards and recognition. She was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Spingarn Medal from NAACP, as well as the Congressional Gold Medal. The National Statuary Hall in Washington DC also has a Rosa Parks statue that was made posthumously to celebrate her life’s work.
She suffered from dementia in her old age and passed away at the age of 92 in 2005. She is the first woman and among the four people to have to ‘lie in honor’ in Capitol Rotunda. Her courage, leadership, and determination for a better life for herself and her community is a lesson for the world, holding weight to this very day.
