Rosa Parks (grade: 2nd)
by
Linda Miller
Growing up an African American in the early 1900's was very difficult. It was a white man's world. African Americans were separated from the rest of society. We were free from slavery but not from the white man's opinion of us. That all began to change on the late afternoon of December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama.
I had put in a long, hard day of work in a men's alteration shop and I was ready to go home. I was extremely tired and my shoulders ached from bending over the sewing machine all day. I locked up the shop and hurriedly crossed the busy street to the bus stop.
Today, I was going to ride the bus.
As the Cleveland Avenue bus came to a halt I began to look to see if there were any available seats. It was difficult to get a seat on the bus, but I decided to stand in line with many other people getting on the same bus.
I made my way through the entrance of the bus. As I walked down the aisle, I approached the only vacant seat. I did not know why this seat was empty since there were several people standing in the back of the bus, but I decided to sit in it anyway. This seat that I took was just in back of the white section of the bus.
The bus made three more stops to pick up other people, but I did not pay any attention to who was getting on. After the third stop, all the front seats had been taken and many other people were scattered standing throughout the bus.
Then I heard a voice telling me that I had to get out of my seat. Was that the bus driver? I could not believe it! I had paid the same fare as everyone else. How could they expect me to give up my seat and make me stand up just because of my skin color? The three other people beside me gave up their seats, but I stayed right where I was.
The next thing I knew two police officers stepped onto the bus. They arrested me and took me to jail. There I had my picture made and my fingerprints taken. They said I had broken the law. I went to court and lost, but I did not give up. I continued to fight for what I believed in -- equal rights for everyone.
I will never forgot how it felt to have all those people staring at me while they took me to jail. I was humiliated, but it opened the door for the African American people of the future. My refusal to give up my seat helped form two other major movements for the black race: the Montgomery Boycott and the Civil Rights Movement.
In the Montgomery Boycott African Americans were protesting my arrest, and they refused to ride on the public buses. Our African American people were tired of being separated from society and humiliated. It was for this reason that no African American rode a public bus in Montgomery, Alabama for the year that the boycott lasted. They continued the boycott until my case was heard in the highest court in America, the Supreme Court. There the judge decided that segregation on the public buses was wrong. They made a law prohibits it, and the boycott was ended. The court system also made a law against separation of blacks and whites in schools 1954.
My refusal to give up my seat on the Cleveland bus also brought about the Civil Rights movement. This movement effected many needed changes for the United States including laws against discrimination and the right for every person to vote. But while schools and buses in the United States could no longer be segregated, there was still a lot of discrimination against the African Americans. Therefore I felt led to go to many demonstrations and civil rights marches to fight for the rights of my people. For this reason, I have been remembered as "The Mother of the Civil Rights Movement."
QUESTIONS:
1. Why was it so difficult for an African American to grow up in the 1950's?
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2. What was Rosa Parks' occupation?
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3. Why was Rosa Parks forced to get out of her seat?
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4. Where and when did Rosa Parks refuse to give up her bus seat?
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OUTLINE
I. ENVIRONMENT
A. White man's world
B. African Americans were separated from society
II. ROSA'S CAREER AS A SEAMSTRESS
III. BOARDING THE BUS
A. Cleveland Ave. bus
B. Waiting in line to ride the bus home
C. Found a vacant seat and sat in it
IV. RIDING THE BUS
A. The bus made three stops and filled up all the seats in the front (the white section of the bus).
B. The bus driver told Rosa to give up her seat to a white man standing in the isle.
C. Three people got out of their seats but Rosa refused to move
V. ROSA WAS ARRESTED AND TAKEN TO JAIL
VI. RESULTS OF ROSA'S STAND
A. Montgomery Boycott
B. Civil Rights Movement
PROPS:
- cardboard box made in the shape of a bus. Have the students decorate/paint the cardboard bus and put two rows of chairs like bus seats.
- glasses and other attire that would resemble Rosa Parks and other people involved in this event. Have the students role play this Montgomery Bus situation.
- have students create a bus stop. Bring in an actual bus stop sign or have the students create one.
ANSWERS TO THE WORKSHEET QUESTIONS:
- African Americans were treated poorly as though they were still slaves.
- a seamstress.
- because she was sitting in the white section of the bus and blacks were supposed to stand in the back of the bus.
- Montgomery, Alabama
December 1, 1955.
EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:
- Role play: Characters-- Rosa Parks; man standing on bus that Rosa was supposed to give her seat up to; bus driver; two policemen that arrested Rosa Parks on the bus.
- Read a story about another famous African American. Draw an illustration, and share the story with a partner.
- Pretend that you were Rosa Parks on the Montgomery bus. Write a story explaining if you would give up your seat on the bus. Explain why you would or would not give up your seat on the bus.
- Look up "Rosa Parks" in the Encyclopedia. Research other freedoms that Rosa Parks was involved in making for the African American.
RESOURCES:
Carson, Clayborne. The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader. Penguin Books: New York. 1991. pg. 45-47.
Gates, Henry Louis Jr. African Americans: Voices of Triumph. Time Life Custom Publishing: Virginia. 1993. pg. 192.
Internet Researching -- Rosa Parks.
History Story
Linda Miller
Social Studies Methods II
Dr. Bassett
October 30, 1996