Rosa Parks
The life and example of this remarkable lady deserves to be celebrated; You can use the resources in a variety of ways:
|
| INTRODUCTION |
|
Rosa Lee Parks died on Monday, October 24th, 2005, aged 92. Not many will have heard of her, or what she did with her life, but hers is a story worth telling - not only for what she did, but for what this ordinary, unassuming person inspired. |
| DEVELOPMENT Rosa Parks was riding home on a bus after work - she repaired clothes at a department store - in Montgomery, Alabama, on December 1st, 1955. A man got onto the bus and demanded her seat. She quietly refused. The bus driver said 'If you don't stand up I'm going to call the police'. Rosa Parks replied 'You may do that'. The police were called, she was arrested - became prisoner 7053 - and was taken to court where she was found guilty of breaking the law and fined. She also lost her job. Unbelievable? Why did that happen? It was the colour of their skin... Rosa Parks was black, the man was white. The law in Alabama in the United Sates of America segregated black and white people. There were separate doors on the buses, separate seats too. Separate seats in the cinema, separate entrances; separate park benches too. Black people were served last in shops - if a woman wanted to try on a hat a bag was put in the hat first. Rosa Parks was tired, that's why she refused to give up her seat... not tired and needing to sit down, but tired of giving in, standing back, giving way. Life was about being second best - always second best, at best second best because this was a time when beatings - even murder - were routine if you dared step over the mark of being second best. What is remarkable about her story is that it sparked action. A few days later thousands met at the local Baptist Church. The meeting was televised nationwide. The local minister called for action and in his speech used images of a biblical pilgrimage until 'justice runs down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream'. His name: Martin Luther King. One of the results of that meeting was that nearly all black people refused to use the buses and the boycott lasted 381 days - causing the bus company to lose 65% of its business. In that time nearly 100 people were arrested, including Parks and King. The houses of King and another leader were bombed. By December the following year the courts banned segregation on buses in Montgomery. But Parks was sacked from her job and with her husband she was forced to move away from the town because of threats and harassment. During that time many people kept silent... did nothing... 'they crossed by on the other side'. The action of Rosa Parks - with her family's support - led to change. Rosa Parks died on October 24th, 2005. As part of honouring her, she will be the first woman - the second African American - to lie in honour in the Capitol Rotunda. A tribute, like lying in state, which is normally kept for presidents, famous politicians and distinguished service people. It's a long journey from that bus ride home in 1955. It's a message of what ordinary people who dare to do extraordinary things can achieve. That message doesn't start with Rosa Parks - or end with her. A young black man in South Africa was in hospital. It was in the time of apartheid when black people were 'second best'. The white priest who visited him always raised his hat as a mark of respect when he met the black man's mother. This was a very unusual act of politeness. The priest was Trevor Huddleston - who became one of the great Christian leaders of the 20th Century. The young black man was impressed and this small act helped him make the decision to become a priest too. His name? Desmond Tutu. Another small act in search of justice is told about a pop group 'Plastic People of the Universe' who played in Communist Czechoslovakia. Their music was considered unsuitable and banned. A young man set up a committee to defend their right to play, this committee grew and became 'Charter 77' one of the cornerstones of the campaign to end communist rule in that country. That man's name? Vaclav Havel who became Prime Minister. As well as these three examples we can think of other people, not famous, who stand up for what is right.. what is just... what is honest... who make a difference. Ordinary people who dare to do the extraordinary can do wonderful things and make the world we all share a better place. The power of Jesus' teaching is often to be found in how he used examples of ordinary people doing things which had extraordinary results: The good Samaritan helping when others didn't. The poor widow giving generously of what little she had. The friends ripping a hole in a roof so that their friend could meet Jesus. |
REFLECTIONGod - powerful yet allowing yourself to be weak |
| (Obituaries have appeared in many national newspapers - some of the information used here has been taken from 'The Guardian' and 'The Glasgow Herald'.) |