The Root
By: Mary C. Curtis Posted: September 21, 2010 at 10:43 AM
The flesh-and-blood Rosa Parks was a lot more interesting than the one we read about in history books. A new book details how she was a warrior for justice for black women who were brutally raped by white men in the segregated South.
Rosa Parks was a demure seamstress who defied a Montgomery, Ala., bus driver's order to give up her seat to a white man because -- on that particular day -- she was tired. Her spontaneous act sparked a 1955 bus boycott that launched the civil rights movement.
Sound familiar? It should. It's the tale told in history books. It's also just a tiny sliver of the truth. The flesh-and-blood Rosa Parks is a lot more interesting. "It's sad, I think," author Danielle L. McGuire told me. "We tend to like our heroes simple and meek."
"If we had a larger sense of who she was, a radical activist and warrior for human rights," instead of a powerless individual struck by chance, said McGuire, it would show the work and the time she put in over many years.
Full Story: http://www.theroot.com/views/rosa-parks-other-radical-side
Showing posts with label Rosa Parks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rosa Parks. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Thursday, November 26, 2009
From Footnote to Fame in Civil Rights History
The New York Times
November 26, 2009
By BROOKS BARNES
On that supercharged day in 1955, when Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Ala., she rode her way into history books, credited with helping to ignite the civil rights movement.
But there was another woman, named Claudette Colvin, who refused to be treated like a substandard citizen on one of those Montgomery buses — and she did it nine months before Mrs. Parks. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made his political debut fighting her arrest. Moreover, she was the star witness in the legal case that eventually forced bus desegregation.
Yet instead of being celebrated, Ms. Colvin has lived unheralded in the Bronx for decades, initially cast off by black leaders who feared she was not the right face for their battle, according to a new book that has plucked her from obscurity.
Last week Phillip Hoose won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature for “Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice,” published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux. The honor sent the little-selling title shooting up 500 spots on Amazon.com’s sales list and immediately thrust Ms. Colvin, 70, back into the cultural conversation.
Full Story: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/26/books/26colvin.html?_r=1&th&emc=th
November 26, 2009
By BROOKS BARNES
On that supercharged day in 1955, when Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Ala., she rode her way into history books, credited with helping to ignite the civil rights movement.
But there was another woman, named Claudette Colvin, who refused to be treated like a substandard citizen on one of those Montgomery buses — and she did it nine months before Mrs. Parks. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made his political debut fighting her arrest. Moreover, she was the star witness in the legal case that eventually forced bus desegregation.
Yet instead of being celebrated, Ms. Colvin has lived unheralded in the Bronx for decades, initially cast off by black leaders who feared she was not the right face for their battle, according to a new book that has plucked her from obscurity.
Last week Phillip Hoose won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature for “Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice,” published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux. The honor sent the little-selling title shooting up 500 spots on Amazon.com’s sales list and immediately thrust Ms. Colvin, 70, back into the cultural conversation.
Full Story: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/26/books/26colvin.html?_r=1&th&emc=th
Buy "Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice" at the AAAA Bookstore http://www.affirmativeaction.org/bookstore.html
Monday, December 1, 2008
Remembering Rosa Parks
Business World Index
UnityFirst.com
Remembering Rosa Parks---Let us all take this day to remember the legacy of Rosa Parks. On Dec. 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Alabama, city bus to protest segregation. Parks, now known as the Mother of Civil Rights Movement, ignited a 381 day boycott of the buses in Montgomery, Alabama, ending on Dec. 21, 1956, after a Supreme Court ruling banning segregation on city public transit vehicles took effect. The family of Rosa Parks continues to inspire people around the world to walk with the inspiration of Rosa’s example. The niece of Rosa Parks, artist Rhea McCauley, has unveiled a portrait of Rosa to honor her aunt. Rhea will tour the country in 2008 to showcase this work of art and connect with communities and organizations working to fulfill Rosa’s vision of a just world. For more information, call (413) 734-6444 or send email to jfondon@unityfirst.com.
UnityFirst.com
Remembering Rosa Parks---Let us all take this day to remember the legacy of Rosa Parks. On Dec. 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Alabama, city bus to protest segregation. Parks, now known as the Mother of Civil Rights Movement, ignited a 381 day boycott of the buses in Montgomery, Alabama, ending on Dec. 21, 1956, after a Supreme Court ruling banning segregation on city public transit vehicles took effect. The family of Rosa Parks continues to inspire people around the world to walk with the inspiration of Rosa’s example. The niece of Rosa Parks, artist Rhea McCauley, has unveiled a portrait of Rosa to honor her aunt. Rhea will tour the country in 2008 to showcase this work of art and connect with communities and organizations working to fulfill Rosa’s vision of a just world. For more information, call (413) 734-6444 or send email to jfondon@unityfirst.com.
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