African-American Civil Rights Movement:
Rosa Parks
Source #1: Standing up for freedom. Jun. 16, 2010
Source #2: Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Quotes from Article: "Back then," Mrs. Parks recalled in an interview, "we didn't have any civil rights. It was just a matter of survival, of existing from one day to the next. I remember going to sleep as a girl hearing the Klan ride at night and hearing a lynching and being afraid the house would burn down." In the same interview, she cited her lifelong acquaintance with fear as the reason for her relative fearlessness in deciding to appeal her conviction during the bus boycott. "I didn't have any special fear," she said. "It was more of a relief to know that I wasn't alone."
"The bus incident led to the formation of the Montgomery Improvement Association, led by the young pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The association called for a boycott of the city-owned bus company. The boycott lasted 382 days and brought Mrs. Parks, Dr. King, and their cause to the attention of the world. A Supreme Court Decision struck down the Montgomery ordinance under which Mrs. Parks had been fined, and outlawed racial segregation on public transportation."
Explanation of Connection: After a long day at work 40-year old seamstress Rosa Parks tiredly took the bus home, when a 40-year old white man got on the bus demanding she give up her seat, so he could sit down she refused. Mrs. Parks was tired of giving in to them, she felt it was time to take a stab at making a difference. This of course made the man and the bus operator (who was also white) furious, they had her immediately thrown in jail. Soon after word got out about Mrs. Parks being thrown in jail for something unfair, many NAACP officials and other African- Americans agreed to organize a protest the day of Mrs.Parks' trial. This event is what sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and eventually ended bus segregation.
This event can be connected to the first amendment, which allows freedom to petition because if people don't like a specific law or rule, they should have the right to take steps in order to try to change it.
Even though this is a right of ours most people don't put it to use. For example, if someone doesn't like the fact that the government is using our tax money to pay for the military, they more than likely won't say anything about it. They'll complain to family and friends, but won't challenge the government, and I ask you why not? What's wrong with taking a risk with something you truly believe in? If you ask me someone should stand up and try to make a difference, who knows, maybe others feel the same way you do. Look at Rosa Parks, Dr. King, Malcolm X, etc. they all took a chance and stood up for what they believed, and if it weren't for them there still might be segregation in the world today.
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