Standing up for freedom

Rosa Parks & Martin Luther King Jr

A maioria dos historiadores datam o princípio do movimento dos direitos civis no dia 1 de Dezembro de 1955. Nesse dia uma mulher em Montgomery, Alabama, recusou sair dar o seu lugar no autocarro a um branco. Esta mulher era Rosa Parks, foi presa e multada em 14 $ por violar uma lei da cidade. Este acto de rebeldia ajudou a começar o movimento dos direitos civis e a acabar com a segregação.
Numa entrevista a Senhora Parks disse: "we didn't have any civil rights. It was just a matter of survival, of existing from one day to the next. I remember going to sleep as a girl hearing the Klan ride at night and hearing a lynching and being afraid the house would burn down."
O incidente no autocarro levou à formação do, Montgomery Improvement Association, liderado pelo jovem pastor do Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, Martin Luther King Jr.
Rosa Parks morreu hoje com 92 anos.

I do the very best I can to look upon life with optimism and hope and looking forward to a better day, but I don't think there is anything such as complete happiness. It pains me that there is still a lot of Klan activity and racism. I think when you say you're happy, you have everything that you need and everything that you want, and nothing more to wish for. I haven't reached that stage yet." - Rosa Parks