The Death of a LegendOctober 24th, 2005-- I just read tonight that Rosa Parks has died at the age of 92.
I've always loved the real story behind Rosa Parks, which is a bit different than the one most of us read about in school. The mythology runs that she was a tired lady who just got fed up with having to give up her seats one day.
This isn't quite how it happened. Rosa Parks was an activist and she knew exactly what she was doing at the time. The bus boycott didn't just happen spontaneously. It was planned and executed masterfully.
This was one of the best and most effective uses of public activism of the 20th century, and it was so effective because the people involved knew exactly what they were doing, what they were facing, were aware of the dangers and looked them square in the eye and refused to blink.
I know that there are people who want to preserve the quaint mythology that Parks was just a lady who got tired one day. I think that this sort of mythology does not serve the memory of Parks nor does it serve the truth. This is a woman who took a corageous stand at a dangerous time. The fact that she went into that act with careful forethought and determination only enhances the power of that act. |
