Rosa Parks did not do it alone

Fifty years ago, on Dec. 1, Rosa Parks refused to move and give her seat on the bus to a white man. She was immediately arrested and charged with violating Montgomery, Alabama’s ordinance against racial integration.

Four days later the black residents of Montgomery launched a boycott of the buses, a boycott which lasted for 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Boycott is now considered by historians to be the pivotal event which launched the Civil Rights Movement on to victory. Rosa Parks has rightly been acclaimed as the heroine of that historic boycott.

The recent celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Boycott was especially poignant because Rosa Parks, who had become the icon of that event, died on October 25 at the age of 92. Understandably, the celebration became more a remembrance of her heroism rather than a review of how such a massive and sustained demonstration was launched.

The real story is told in filmmaker Henry Hampton’s great gift to America, his production, "Eyes on the Prize". This work provides a visual account of that whole period in the history of Montgomery, Alabama. It becomes clear that many others, whose names are omitted from the history books, played a major role. Fortunately, Hampton was able to interview many of these people.

Prior to Dec. 1, 1955, blacks in Montgomery accepted racial discrimination as just the way things were. However, not everyone was so passive. After a humiliating experience on the bus in 1949, Jo Ann Robinson, a professor at Alabama State College, began efforts to launch a boycott of the bus system. She continually lobbied the Women’s Political Council in Montgomery to prepare to implement such a strategy. By 1955 she had overcome objections and a boycott plan was in place.

E. D. Nixon, a former Pullman Porter and an officer in the local NAACP, had developed a plan to challenge Montgomery’s Back of the Bus policy. He only awaited a complainant with a spotless record. The plan was to boycott while a lawsuit was pending. Nixon knew that any "flaws" in the plaintiff’s character would be exploited by defense counsel.

Along came Rosa Parks. Far from being a simple seamstress, she had a high school education which was a substantial achievement for a woman born in Montgomery in 1913. Her personal life had been without blemish. She was a perfect defendant.

The literature would have readers believe that Rosa Parks magically waved her hand and the boycott erupted. The fact is that Mrs. Parks was arrested on Thursday, and on Friday Jo Ann Robinson had distributed fliers throughout Montgomery for a boycott of the buses on Monday.

Civil rights leaders and ministers met on Friday and agreed to support Monday’s boycott, which was phenomenally successful. They met again on Monday night, formed the Montgomery Improvement Association, and elected a young minister, Dr. Martin Luther King to be president. They voted to extend the boycott indefinitely and the 40,000 black citizens of Montgomery backed that decision.

The real story of the Montgomery Boycott is what can be accomplished when the leaders are competent and courageous and the people are disciplined and willing to endure inconvenience.

Melvin B. Miller

Editor & Publisher
Bay State Banner