The Realities of Montgomery
The law in Montgomery stated that white people and black people had to sit in different sections of the bus and use different entrances. Because of this law, many bus drivers declared that black people had to sit at the back of the bus while white people would sit up front. In addition, black people had to stand up and give their bus seat to any white person who asked for it. They also had to stand in the back even if there were empty seats at the front of the bus. One day in 1955, a white man demanded that a black woman named Rosa Parks give him her seat. She told the man “no.” This one simple word got her arrested.
Think about it:
- Is it okay to break a law if you think it is wrong, or is it more important to obey the law? Do you think Rosa Parks was right to refuse to give up her seat?
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Rosa Parks is Arrested
Many people in Montgomery were upset by Rosa Parks’ arrest. Rosa Parks was a highly respected and well-liked woman. When people saw her treated badly, they knew that they had to act. There was a big meeting at a local Baptist Church, and Dr. King was elected leader of the Montgomery Improvement Association. On December 5, 1955, the black population of Montgomery, Alabama, decided that they would “boycott” the buses. If black people could not ride the bus just like the white people, then they would not ride the buses at all, even if they had to walk for miles and miles to get to work or to school. This way, the buses would lose money and everyone would see that the laws were unfair.
Think about it:
- The Montgomery Bus Boycott was nonviolent and did not hurt anyone, but it still caused a great impact because of money and visibility. When people didn’t pay for bus tickets, the city lost a lot of money. Also, when people walked to work for miles and miles every day, the newspapers and the people of Montgomery noticed. Can you think of other actions that do not hurt anyone but might increase visibility for something you care about?
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Montgomery Stages a Boycott
Many people of all races supported the efforts of the black boycotters. Some of them donated money to the boycott. To help the blacks who had to travel long distances, taxi drivers offered reduced fares, and people who owned cars gave free rides to work. Others were not so supportive. The government tried to stop the boycott since it cost the city a lot of money, and a few people were angry and violent in response to the boycott. Someone even bombed Dr. King’s house. Dr. King told the people not to be violent in return. He said “Be calm as I and my family are. We are not hurt and remember that if anything happens to me, there will be others to take my place.”
Think about it:
- When someone bombed Dr. King’s house, he still did not want anyone to be violent in return. What do you think is more important, to make sure that the person who bombed Dr. King’s house was punished, or to make sure that the protests stayed nonviolent and focused only on change?
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The Boycott Produces Results
The boycott continued until December 1956. By then, the city of Montgomery finally realized that it could not afford to lose money from its black passengers. The city also noticed that people all over the country supported the boycotters. In other states, people collected money, held prayer meetings, and held nonviolent protests of their own to show support for the protesters of Montgomery. Soon, the issue of segregation on public transportation went all the way to the United States Supreme Court. The court ruled in favor of desegregation and struck down all of the laws that segregated the public buses. This brought Dr. King’s strategy of nonviolent protest into the public eye. People saw that protesting unjust laws without using violence could indeed change the law.
