Introduction
The Civil Rights movements were a sequence or succession of political movements for equality, and it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance that was aimed at attaining transformations. Worth noting was the fact that the campaigns were non-violent and civil disobedience pushing for minority’s rights, women rights, as well voting rights. Such rights and privileges were not entitled to the Black Americans according to the United States Constitution especially in the Southern States. The disobedience and protests that were opted for by the Black Americans were boycotts (Brooks, 2008). By illustration, the Montgomery Bus Boycott and rallies among others. Most of those popular movements were all concentrated around the guidance and philosophy of Martin Luther King Jr. among others such as Doug McAdam (Miller, 2012). Converging on the Rosa Park and Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Movement, the paper would endeavor at describing the event as well as analyzing the historical and contemporary causes of the event. In addition, the historical interpretations of the event and an evaluation of the positive and negative outcomes of the event would be expounded and given further details.
Description of the historical event
After a series of injustices on the blacks, it happened that in the year 1955, Rosa Perks was going home from her job and she decided to ride on the Montgomery bus. She went in and paid the bus fair and sat on the seats that were reserved for the whites that was way into the bus close to the center of the bus. It happened that, the very bus driver who had thrown her out of the bus around 13 years ago was the very driver of this bus. When she refused to relinquish the seat for the whites who were standing, when the three blacks were asked to leave the seats for the whites, the two men left but she refused to because she had decided that she would not do that (Haskins, 2003).
The driver after she had refused called the police who arrested her for going against the rules of the bus that were passed way back in the year 1900. Following her arrest, the blacks were irritated and stage the bus boycott that took 13 months mass protest that ended with the Supreme Court ruling against the racial segregation in the bus. The Montgomery bus boycott was the first successful nonviolent demonstration that succeeded under the lairdship of Martin Luther king who became famous after the boycott. The boycott staged a fertile ground for more protests in the southern that challenged racial segregation (Brooks, 2008).
The boycott did not just begin with the arrest of Rosa but had started long before her arrest. The women’s political council had in the year 1946 looked keenly at Jim crew practices on the buses. It is this that made the council to meet Mayor Gayle to list the changes they would expect to happen in the Montgomery buses where by wanted the same attention given to the whites be provided to them too. The mayor declined their request and President Jo Ann Robinson had to reiterate after getting the plan of a nationwide boycott of buses which was from a letter written by the women council (Miller, 2004). Several arrests followed that made the blacks irritated and by the help of Robinson staged a one day boycott at the city’s bases. The boycott was published in the papers and made public in the radios and televisions making the city minister and leader to hold a talk with the leaders of the protest and finally, King was chosen as a leader of the MIA.
The very nightfall after the boycott, the MIA met and commonly agreed to continue with the protest until they gained their justice in the buses since they believe that they were right and it was their right to be treated fairly. Lead by King, they staged the protests and further organized a carpool to enable their impact to be felt (Miller, 2004). Even after a series of meetings, nothing good came out of the meetings meaning the situation still remained to the very one. In the year 1956, Martin Luther king’s house was bombed something that made the masses that me at his home very angry but King calmed them down promising them of a better tomorrow (Phibbs, 2009). The blacks from different places advised King on what he ought to do and several others contributed money to assist them come out of the problem. In the year 1956, the court in the case Browder v/s Gayle ruled out that, bus segregation was not constitutional and in November the same year, the Supreme Court only confirmed that bus segregation was no good and enforced rules that would determine the fair proration this boycott. It is at this time in the year 1956 that the organization through King called off the strike and the meeting the people went to an end after a series struggle (Robinson, 1989).The historical and contemporary causes of the event
The United States of America is in the modern times a society that many people from all over the world would love to be because it is viewed by many as the ‘Dream Land’. The same people would not wish to be there during the years when the blacks were only slaves who had no rights nor freedom. However, it is a country where segregation, racism, and discrimination of any kind is outlawed resulting to a society where everyone is equally treated according to the law. Nevertheless, it was a struggle that took many years not forgetting to mention that it took the lives of many as well (Carnes, 2007). Various historical events were attributed to that as well, and one of them was the Rosa Park that resulted to the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
There were various historical as well as contemporary factors that resulted to the event. For instance, the case ‘Plessy v/s Ferguson of the year 1896 was a major reason why many Civil Rights Movements pop up in the American society. It was a case that resulted to the verdict of “Separate but equal” standards in the country. That implied that there would be isolation between the blacks and the whites with the whites being favored as superior by the law. The famous “Jim Crow’s Law” were enacted and were enforced. Hence, the Rosa Park’s Montgomery Bus Boycott was as a result of such laws that allowed for racial discrimination and isolation among the populace in line of there racial lines. Bearing in mind that the laws were to be enforced in all aspects; schools, homes, hospitals, transport systems not excluded, it become the major reason for the boycott. Concluding that the boycotts would not have taken place were it not for the Plessy v/s Fergusson case that resulted to the Jim Crow’s laws would without a doubt be true.
Other historical and contemporary causes for the event would be traced back to previous years. For instance, the black Americans took part in the 2nd World War although they did that in different units. They took the front lines as one, but back at home, they were not. It was after the war that the veterans increased the pressure for the country to stand together as one by eliminating the racial discrimination (Carnes, 2007). Had it happened in the front lines, the Allied victory would not have been a reality. Hence, holding and concluding that the war played a part in the event would not be disputed at all. In addition, the boom that was experienced in the country gave hope to all that good times were ahead, and as a result, there was a positive and favorable environment from where an assault on the mainstays of racism would be made all over the country (Miller, 1998). That explains why the previous women that were arrested previous for doing what Rosa Park did were not on the lime light and they as well did not result to better results. The different historical interpretations of the event
There are various historical interpretations attributed to the whole event. The first construal tied to the event held that while many pupils thought that Rosa Park was merely arrested for refusing to give up her seat, they would be shocked to realize that there was more to that. For instance, although many had no knowledge of it, the reality was that Rosa Park was connected to the African-American movement that was geared up in fighting for their rights. In addition, she was knowingly participating in an organized attempt to initiate transformations in the intensely segregated South (Garrow, 1985).The reason for that interpretation was that, before the Rosa Park event, the organization responsible for Civil Rights movements had existed in Montgomery for several years although it had its own issues making it less effective giving fewer impacts that it was thought it would (Garrow, 1985). Importantly, two other women had previously been arrested with similar offense although their response was not vocal as the Rosa Park arrest. Hence, Rosa Park’s arrest generated more success something that would be attributed to the better coordination and planning for the event leading to the arrest (Garrow, 1985). That explains why there was a News Reporter right behind Rosa Parks recording the events as they unfolded.
The second historical interpretations that would be tied to the Rosa Parks event was entitled “Parting the Waters: American in the King Years” during the 1950s. The publication went on to reveal that it was not true that Rosa Park repudiated and declined to give up her sit since she was tired (Branch, 1989). Rather, she her was on recorded to have indicated that it was not true. That implies that Rosa Park was not physically drained, but she was tired of giving in to the mistreatments and exploitations that the Black Americans were going through. That fact would be substantiated by the fact that Rosa Parks was already a seasoned activist by the time of the incidence (Branch, 1989). As a result, the notion that Rosa was a submissive, humble, and modest woman who reacted under the humiliation of Montgomery’s isolation bus system does not hold water. Moreover, it was revealed that she had a history of rebelliousness especially towards the racial injustice that they were undergoing in addition to the fact that she had taken a major role in various Civil Rights agendas in the previous years (Branch, 1989). By illustration, deeper digging about her indicated that she was on recorded to have raised money for the Scottsboro Boy’s legal defense together with her husband. That was twelve years before her arrest on the issue of Montgomery something that clearly reveals that there was more to her arrest than it was being indicated.
Worth mentioning also was the interpretation that was given by Robin Kelly under the New York Free Press in the year 1996. Under the publication, it was deduced that although many would not believe it, Rosa Park was a nonconformist, a rebellious, as well as a rabble-rouser or agitator (Kelly, 1996). Although she was not the first woman to have gone against the rules or to have acted against the racial segregation back then, she was credited to have initiated for the starting the Civil Rights Movement in the area. However, the author indicates that the Birmingham, the Alabama’s transportation system was the battlefield for the Civil Rights scuffle, and it had remained so for over ten years before the incident of Rosa Park (Kelly, 1996). However, the previous events were never vocal or publicized as the Rosa Park because of many aspects one of them being poor organization and planning as revealed previously within this paper. Evaluation of the positive and negative outcomes of the event
The event had several outcomes; a struggle that took a very long time was marked by both positive and negative results. To begin with, the struggle yielded very positive results. The determination of the leaders of the event finally made it to the end bringing about very positive outcomes as it was expected by many blacks. Some of the positive outcomes of the struggle include; the end of segregation in the buses (Miller, 2004). The struggle that had started with a very minor group of women some long time ago finally found its resting place at enabling the black African Americans having the same constitutional right with the whites who had oppressed them for a very long time. By the year 1956 after the hard struggle spearheaded by Martin Luther king who never gave up in agitating for the rights of the blacks (Brooks, 2008).
In addition to that, the event made the blacks to significantly fight for other rights. Apart from the discrimination that was seen in the buses, the African American was subjected to very hostile conditions, the kind of treatment that they received from the whites was not good at all. They were oppressed by all means by the whites. In the southern part of America, the blacks were facing a very long and harsh period of time (Haskins, 2003). Several other groups enjoyed the good results of the struggle. The racial discrimination that existed in schools was also solved as a result of the struggle that was sparked off by Rosa Parks. The blacks had been discriminated greatly in schools where blacks were not allowed to share a class with the white. Despite the well spelt constitution having outlined it so well that the racial segregation was unconstitutional, there was no way to agitate for the same apart from the boycotts that were organized against the segregation not unless they had the president’s approval (Haskins, 2003). Finally, the students started attending the same schools that they were discriminated from before.
Despite the good outcomes that came out of the event, the event had recorded very many negative outcomes of the event. Some of the negative events that would be remembered and associated with the whole event were that several imprisonments were made for the Black Americas. As a way to agitate for the equal rights between the blacks and he whites, very many people were jailed (Carnes, 2007). Mrs. Rasa was among the people who got jailed while trying to defend her rights. Several other young ladies where also jailed because they had disobeyed the rule that was set that about the seats of the busses. The harsh treatment came as a result of agitating for their constitutional right. The event also resulted into the loss of property amongst the Africans; properties were lost during this period. In the year 1956, the worst happened when king’s house was totally destroyed by a bomb that was staged there. There were some other people who had survived serious repercussions (Brooks, 2008). The boycotts that were staged every now and then also had serious outcomes; very many people lost their lives on the event of the struggle that they had encountered. Very notable men like Martin Luther King finally got assassinated because they were at the forefront agitating for rights of the blacks.
Reference
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Brooks, P. E. (2008). Boycotts, buses, and passes: Black women's resistance in the U.S. South and South Africa. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press.
Carnes, M. C. (2007). The Columbia history of post-World War II America. New York: Columbia University Press.
Garrow J. David (1985)."The Origins of the Montgomery Bus Boycott," Southern Changes (Vol. 7, No. 5, 1985) 21-27.
Haskins, J. (2003). Black stars of the civil rights movement. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley.
Kelly Robin, (1996). Race Rebels: Culture, Politics, and the Black Working Class (New York: Free Press, 1996).
Miller, C. C. (2012). Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Oxford: Raintree.
Miller, J. (2004). The Montgomery bus boycott: Integrating public buses. New York: Rosen Pub. Group.
Miller, W. J. (1998). Teaching U.S. history through children's literature: Post-World War II. Englewood, Colo: Teacher Ideas Press.
Phibbs, C. F. (2009). The Montgomery Bus Boycott: A history and reference guide. Santa Barbara, Calif: Greenwood.
Robinson, J. A. G. (1989). The Montgomery bus boycott and the women who started it: The memoir of Jo Ann Gibson Robinson. Knoxville, Tenn: University of Tennessee Press.
