20 interesting facts about Rosa Parks

Rosa Parks, born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama, was an American civil rights activist who is best known for her role in the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Parks’ act of defiance on December 1, 1955, sparked the Civil Rights Movement in the United States and made her a symbol of resistance against racial segregation. Today, Parks is remembered as a hero and a pioneer in the fight for equality and justice. Here are some fascinating facts about her life and legacy.

1. Rosa Parks was the first woman to be honored with a statue in the United States Capitol.
2. Parks was a seamstress by trade and worked as a housekeeper and later as a department store salesperson.
3. She was also active in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and held leadership positions within the organization.
4. On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white person on a Montgomery, Alabama bus.
5. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was organized as a protest against her arrest, and lasted for over a year.
6. Parks was found guilty of violating the segregation laws and was fined $10 and court costs.
7. After the boycott, she moved to Detroit, Michigan, where she worked for Congressman John Conyers.
8. Parks received numerous awards and honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal.
9. Parks continued to be an active advocate for civil rights until her death on October 24, 2005.
10. A museum dedicated to her life and legacy, the Rosa Parks Museum, was opened in 2000 in Montgomery, Alabama.
11. Parks’ act of resistance on that December day in 1955 inspired many others to join the fight for equal rights, including Martin Luther King Jr.
12. She was widely recognized as the “Mother of the Civil Rights Movement”.
13. Parks’ refusal to give up her seat on the bus is widely considered one of the most significant events in the Civil Rights Movement.
14. Parks was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 1999, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996.
15. Parks was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1998.
16. The bus on which Parks was arrested is now part of the collection of the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan.
17. In 2013, a bronze statue of Parks was installed at the U.S. Capitol, becoming the first statue of an African American woman in the Capitol.
18. A park in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C., was named in her honor.
19. The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development was founded by Parks and her husband to mentor and support young people.
20. In 2015, the Rosa Parks Library and Museum at Troy University in Montgomery, Alabama, was dedicated to her legacy.

These are just a few of the many fascinating facts about Rosa Parks, a woman whose courage and determination inspired millions to stand up for their rights and fight against discrimination and injustice. Her legacy continues to inspire new generations to work towards a more equitable and just society.

Rosa Parks, born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, Alabama, was an American civil rights activist who is best known for her role in the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Parks’ act of defiance on December 1, 1955, sparked the Civil Rights Movement in the United States and made her a symbol…