Remembering Rosa Parks
REMEMBERING ROSA PARKS -- (House of Representatives - October 26, 2005)
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, it was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Mrs. Rosa Parks on October 24, 2005. I rise today along with my colleagues to celebrate and remember the life of a remarkable woman. I know that I speak for my colleagues here today when I say that America has lost one of its greatest citizens.
Mrs. Rosa Parks became one the Nation's first heroes of the Civil Rights Movement. Her refusal to give up her seat on a Montgomery Alabama bus solely because of her race sparked a result that no one could have predicted. The 381-day boycott of the Montgomery Alabama bus system and Mrs. Parks' court case were the first nationally recognized battles of the Civil Rights Movement. This movement eventually brought about legislation to end segregation in public accommodations, to secure the voting rights of all citizens, and to eliminate discriminatory housing practices, effectively changing the face of American society forever.
Although Mrs. Parks' actions were pivotal in creating laws, her actions also galvanized public support for the equal treatment of African Americans. It's important to remember that Mrs. Parks' actions did not exist in a vacuum. Less than a year had passed since the grisly lynching death of Emmett Till in Mississippi. Violence was a constant threat to anyone, black or white, who spoke out against the status quo. Mrs. Parks' actions resulted in death threats against her and her husband, threats which caused her to leave Alabama. The fact that people could harbor such hatred against Mrs. Parks solely for her desire to be treated as an equal person exposed to much of the country the cruel and ignorant practices of Jim Crow. The images from the fight for civil rights filled television screens throughout the world and were central in changing public opinions.
I had the honor and pleasure to meet Mrs. Parks when I was a fifth grade student in the late 1950's. She worked at Hampton Institute, now Hampton University, with my grandmother at the Holly Tree Inn. After leaving Hampton, she moved to Detroit, Michigan where she found work as a seamstress. In 1965, she went on to serve in the office of our distinguished colleague, the gentleman from Michigan, Mr. Conyers. Her 23 years of service to him and to this body are also worthy of commendation.
I want to express my condolences to the Parks family. Rosa Parks' act of non-violent resistance showed the world the power of one person in the face of injustice. Her name rightly belongs in the pantheon of individuals who have put the civil rights of all above their own personal safety. We have lost a national treasure.
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