On the warm afternoon of Dec. 1, 1955, as recalled by famed civil rights attorney Fred D. Gray as “very similar to the weather today,” Rosa Parks finished her shift as a seamstress at the Montgomery Fair Department Store and waited for the Cleveland Avenue bus to take her home. Parks took an open seat in a section reserved for whites, but as more people boarded at subsequent stops, she was asked to surrender place to a white man. She refused, and police took her into custody.
Her arrest sparked outrage throughout the Black community and on Dec. 5, 1955, the 382-day Montgomery Bus Boycott began, a boycott many consider the starting point of the modern civil rights movement.
Sixty-six years later to the day, near the very spot where Parks took a stand, in her seat, against segregation, military leaders, students, educators, civic leaders, business people and members of the community paid homage at the unveiling of artwork that puts Parks’ image in a place of honor for all to see. The black steel, V-shaped sculpture, designed and constructed by Montgomery artist Ian Mangum, creates a powerful outline of Parks’ face.
Col. Eries Mentzer, commander of the 42nd Air Base Wing at Maxwell Air Force Base and the first African-American women to hold that position, opened Wednesday’s program by framing the importance of the day and its legacy. “It is my honor to be here today, because if not for Ms. Rosa Parks, if not for Mr. Fred Gray, if not for all of those foot soldiers who led the way toward a more inclusive America, I would not be here today and I am truly grateful.”
Gray, a longtime attorney who represented Parks, and who recently had a street named in his honor in Montgomery, also spoke at the event. “Looking back over these 66 years, there’s no question in my mind that the events that occurred in Montgomery over that period of time, and with divine intervention, and with the help of some 40,000 African-Americans staying off of the buses, not only changed the city of Montgomery, the state of Alabama, and these United States, but also changed the world.”
The location of Parks’ historic arrest, now graced with her image, will serve as a permanent reminder of the event, and a beacon of encouragement for the thousands of people who visit the Rosa Parks Museum at Troy University – Montgomery each year. The newly installed artwork and the museum are located at 252 Montgomery St., Montgomery. The Alabama Power Foundation provided support for the installation.
The city of Montgomery has ongoing activities planned this week to honor Parks’ impact and legacy.
(Courtesy of Alabama NewsCenter)
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