Essay/Term paper: Rosa parks

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Racism and Discrimination

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.