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Rosa parks and oppression
The Montgomery Bus Boycott
The montgomery bus boycott essays
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On December 1st, 1955, Rosa Parks, a civil rights activist and progressivist made a decision that sparked one of the largest progressive movements. When told to give up her designated seat for a caucasian man, she refused implying that she was tired of giving in to racist culture. Her decision elicited the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a movement in which all of the African Americans in the area refused to ride the bus to show their support for Rosa Parks. This movement inspired other African Americans to rebel for their basic rights, aiding the civil rights movement. Although rebellion does cause violence and bloodshed, Oscar Wilde is correct in saying that disobedience and rebellion are the keystones of progress.
After Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger, king wanted to end the humiliating treatment of blacks on city bus liners. He decided to start the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which lasted 382 days. Eventually, the U.S. Supreme Court declared Montgomery bus segregation laws illegal. King showed great inspiration despite receiving several threatening phone calls, being arrested and having his house being bombed, he still firmly believed in nonviolence. The boycott was the first step to end segregation, king displayed great leadership and educated the whole nation that nonviolence was the best possible was to end a problem, even if it took a while for people to notice your protest.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott can be viewed as a symbol of the Civil Rights Movement as a whole, as neither one’s success was due solely to the work of the political system; a transformation in the consciousness of America was the most impactful success of both. Passionate racism ran in the veins of 1950s America, primarily in the south, and no integration law would influence the widespread belief that African Americans were the same level of human as Caucasians. The abolition of racism as a political norm had to start with a unanimous belief among blacks that they had power as American citizens; once they believed that to be true, there was no limit to the successes they could see.
Culturally, the Montgomery Bus Boycott set the mood of the entire Civil Rights Movement. The public buses in Montgomery, Alabama at the time were segregated, the whites sat at the front and the blacks sat at the back. During this time, the white community saw themselves as superior to the other races. However, the African-American community have started to stand up for themselves. Although she was not the first one to do so, Rosa Parks was the one to spark the boycott. She refused to give her seat up to a white passenger which resulted in her arrest. For Parks, “it is unlikely that she fully realized the forces she had set into motion and the controversy that would soon swirl around her” says the official website of the Montgomery Bus
Because she would not move to the back of the bus, she was arrested for violating the Alabama bus segregation laws. Rosa was thrown in jail and fined $140. Enraged by Mrs. Parks arrest the black community of Montgomery, united together and organized a boycott of the bus system until the city buses were integrated. The black men and women stayed off the buses until December 20, 1956, almost thirteen months after the boycott goal was reached. The Montgomery Bus Boycott can be considered a major turning point in the Civil Rights Movement because it made Martin Luther King Jr. public leader in the movement, starting point for non-violent protest as an effective tool in the fight for civil rights, and showed that African-Americans united for a cause could stand up to segregation. Being president of the Montgomery Improvement Association taught Martin Luther the skills and gave him the exposure to become a great leader of a movement as large as the civil rights movement.
When Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery in 1955, she engaged in one of the most iconic acts of civil disobedience in American history. She was arrested, and her nonviolent resistance of segregation laws led to the famous Montgomery bus boycott. Although many people hail Parks’ act of civil disobedience as one of courage and great importance, today the topic of civil disobedience is controversial. Some criticize this form of protest as a path to anarchy, and others say that it is not defiant enough. However, peaceful resistance to laws positively impacts a free society because it can help marginalized groups, challenge immoral war, and combat harmful corporate interests.
Commonly, Rosa Park’s arrests for refusing to yield her seat on a bus for a White man is a popular misconception of being the primary stimulant that kindled the uproar of the historical boycott of Montgomery’s buses known today. Contrarily, unprecedented, racially provoked violence, and discriminative and segregated events prior to Parks’ conviction motivated leaders to organize their communities for the challenge to break barriers of government’s disregards to Negro’s rights and race equality. Parks was the catalyst that spread to the community for the immediate need for change. Despite, Negroes limited sources, and assumptions they were impressionable and unintelligent; nevertheless, their stance made an economical impact to public transportation, crippled businesses’ revenue, and pressured the government to arbitrate laws against segregation. Within the short period of Parks’ arrest, Negroes were able to brainstorm various strategies that led to the success of the boycott, which included but not limited to the following: proper marketing, assertive leaders, and implementing a civil plan.
Henry David Thoreau’s work on civil disobedience in 1849 paved way for Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. His work stated that if you don’t like what is being done then don’t just say you want change be the change you want to see. In the case of Rosa Parks she didn’t find it right she had to sit in the back of the bus so she didn’t sit in the back. Then she was put into jail. After people heard about Rosa Parks they stood up and started protecting.
"Civil Disobedience" by Thoreau describes the government and what he believes is best. Thoreau implements diction and imagery to support his claim that the best government is one that does not govern at all.
In a century where the United States had experienced major change around the world, two world wars, and was in an ongoing arms race with the Soviet Union, there was change to be made within the nation as well. One of the first events to see Dr. King’s involvement in civil rights was December 1, 1955 when Rosa Parks, a civil rights activist, refused to give up her seat on a public bus to a white man. Rosa Parks was arrested for not wanting to give up her seat and was put in jail. Thi...
People in the 1950’s were not treated with the respect they are today. Thus, Martin Luther King’s dream of freedom and equality for mankind did transpire, however it came its limitations. One brave individual who stands out during these unjust times of segregation is Rosa Parks. With her audacious actions and complete serenity, she sparked a nation. By courageously refusing to conform to racial laws, Rosa Parks aided in the achievement of integration. Although racism still exists in the world, without Rosa Park’s courage, maybe blacks and whites would still sit on the opposite sides of a bus. -Stephanie Schille
Civil disobedience is defined as the act of refusing to obey laws, pay taxes using a nonviolent means of protesting or of attempting to achieve political goals (“Civil Disobedience”). Thoreau shows the act of civil disobedience in Civil Disobedience. Douglass also demonstrates civil disobedience in “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”. There are also many famous figures that practiced civil disobedience. Harriet Tubman was also a well- known civil rights activist that helped many slaves escape through the Underground Railroad. Rosa Parks displayed civil disobedience when she refused to give up her seat to a white passenger, creating the Montgomery boycott intending to end segregation. Many of these civil rights activists have influenced the way things are today. Civil disobedience has forever affected our society in many ways. Civil disobedience is appropriate and justified under certain circumstances.
(3) Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955): After the supreme court decided to end segregation, African Americans started to speak out more about their racial opinions. In Montgomery, Alabama, a bus boycott ended with a victory for the African Americans. The Supreme Court ruled that the Alabama segregation laws were unconstitutional. During the boycott a young African American Baptist minister, Martin Luther King, Jr. became well known. Throughout the long contest he advised African Americans to avoid violence no matter had badly provoked by whites. Rosa Parks tired of sitting in the back of the bus, and giving up her seat to white men. One weary day she refused to move from the front of the bus, and she became one of history's heroes in the Civil Rights Act movement.
Jean Jacques Rousseau, a Swiss-born philosopher, and author. He was born on June 28th, 1712 to Isaac Rousseau and Suzanne Bernard. His childhood was not easy, his mother passed away several days after his birth due to complications, his only brother ran away from home when he was a small child, and his father left because he wanted to avoid imprisonment. Jean was forced to stay with his uncle alone, and he faced many issues there as well. He knew that he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life in poverty, so with a strong work ethic and determination he sent in an essay and got accepted to an academy where his work was acknowledged. Jean spent a lot of time with his writing because it was something that he enjoyed and found peace
The concepts of obedience and disobedience are evident from the beginning of one 's life. Young children are born with the tendency to do things that are against what they are told or what they know they should do. They don 't have to learn how to disobey; it is an innate behavior. This struggle between obedience and disobedience carries on throughout our lives. There are three major factors that can cause obedience and disobedience; authority, social pressure, and situations. Each of these vastly impact an individual 's behavior and cause them to act in ways they would normally not.
Oscar Wilde was born in October 16, 1854, in the mid era of the Victorian period—which was when Queen Victoria ruled. Queen Victoria reigned from 1837 to 1901.While she ruined Britain, the nation rise than never before, and no one thought that she was capable of doing that. “The Victorian era was both good and bad due to the rise and fall of the empires and many pointless wars were fought. During that time, culture and technology improved greatly” (Anne Shepherd, “Overview of the Victorian Era”). During this time period of English, England was facing countless major changes, in the way people lived and thought during this era. Today, Victorian society is mostly known as practicing strict religious or moral behavior, authoritarian, preoccupied with the way they look and being respectable. They were extremely harsh in discipline and order at all times. Determination became a usual Victorian quality, and was part of Victorian lifestyle such as religion, literature and human behavior. However, Victorian has its perks, for example they were biased, contradictory, pretense, they cared a lot of about what economic or social rank a person is, and people were not allowed to express their sexuality. Oscar Wilde was seen as an icon of the Victorian age. In his plays and writings, he uses wit, intelligence and humor. Because of his sexuality he suffered substantially the humiliation and embarrassment of imprisonment. He was married and had an affair with a man, which back then was an act of vulgarity and grossness. But, that was not what Oscar Wilde was only known for; he is remembered for criticizing the social life of the Victorian era, his wit and his amazing skills of writing. Oscar Wilde poem “The Ballad of Reading Gaol” typifies the Vi...