from Rosa Parks: My Story (page 168)

Rosa Parks Feb. 13, 1913 - Oct. 25, 2005 Born in Tuskegee, Alabama Known as the “mother of the modern Civil Rights Movement.” In 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama - arrested for breaking an unfair law– she refused to give up her seat on a public bus to a white man Incited a boycott that led to the end of segregation on the Montgomery bus system Her courageous act marked the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement In 1999, she was granted Congressional Gold Medal (highest honor given to a US civilian)

The back of the bus... In Montgomery, Alabama, where Parks lived, the bus system reserved the first four rows for white riders. 75 percent of the ridership was made up of black riders. On December 1, 1955 at about 6 p.m., Parks went on the bus and sat on the first row of seats reserved for black people. As the bus travelled, seats reserved for whites filled up. Some were forced to stand. The bus driver, James F. Blake, demanded that Parks and other riders sitting in the first sections move. Parks refused and Blake had her arrested.

The Montgomery Bus Boycott Blacks boycott the Montgomery Bus system Black cab drivers took blacks to work for $.10 per ride, while others organized carpools. Boycotts follow in bus systems across the country. The boycott ended on December 20, 1956 (381 days) The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Alabama’s bus segregation unconstitutional. The Federal Interstate Commerce Commission bans segregation on interstate trains and buses.

Things to think about… This work is defined by which “type” of nonfiction? What is Parks’ purpose in writing her story? What is her childhood memory of her grandfather? How does this memory affect her action that day on the bus many years later? What kind of “tired” was she? Why does she explain this to the reader?

Notes: This work is defined by which “type” of nonfiction? autobiography What is Parks’ purpose in writing her autobiography? To increase the awareness and understanding of the struggles of African Americans What is her childhood memory of her grandfather? She remembers her grandfather carrying a gun to protect himself and his family. How does this memory affect her action that day on the bus many years later? She knew it was wrong for her grandfather to always have been afraid– she didn’t want to be afraid anymore.

Notes: (cont.) “What kind of tired” was she? “tired of giving in” into the fear and oppression Why does she explain this to the reader? She wants people to know why she refused to give up her seat– NOT because she was physically tired or elderly…