Montgomery Bus Boycott free essay sample

Jo Ann Gibson Robinson entered an almost empty bus on a â€Å"Saturday morning before Christmas in December 1949† (15), before entering she had no idea what was about to occur on that day. She proceeded to pay and take a seat in the fifth row from the front. While â€Å"envisioning†¦the wonderful week’s vacation†¦with family and friends in Ohio† (15) she did not realize the bus driver stopped the bus to tell her to get up from where she was sitting. The bus driver stood over Mrs. Robinson and yelled at her while telling her to â€Å"get up from there! † (16). She left the bus teary eyed, fearful, and humiliated. Mrs. Robinson was one of the many African Americans who endured racial segregation and she wanted to do something about it. Requiring black passengers to pay fares in the front of the bus and then entered through the rear (31), reserving the front 10 double seats for whites (31) and addressing black patrons with obscene language (31), were some of the root causes of the Civil Rights Movement. We will write a custom essay sample on Montgomery Bus Boycott or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page On December 1st 1955, Rosa Parks was â€Å"arrested for refusing to vacate her seat for a white man† (43). As soon as this incident occurred The Women’s Political Council took action and according the American journey they â€Å"initiated a mass boycott of the privately owned bus company† (864). Mrs. Robinson and two of her students created a notice that informed every African American in Montgomery about the boycott. The morning of Rosa Parks’ trial on December 5th 1955 was the day the one day bus boycott started and it was a complete success. After individuals stopped riding the buses, it got the attention of many reporters and news journalists and they claimed that â€Å"there was a discipline among Negroes which whites were not aware of† (62). This particular day led to months of hard work to come for Jo Ann Gibson Robinson. Other Civil Rights Activists were also a part of the boycott, such as 26 year old pastor Martin Luther King Jr. He led the boycott and was very determined to work and fight for the rights of the African Americans in Montgomery and within the south. The success of the one-day boycott brought on an organization called the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA). The association was created to continue the bus boycott campaign and â€Å"pledged to protect, defend, encourage, enlighten and assist the members of the black community†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (64). To help sustain the boycott, Mrs. Robinson held a leading position within the MIA executive board. Martin Luther King Jr. was chosen as president of MIA and held his position within the â€Å"thirteen months of the boycott† (66) and became famous after the success of the boycott. A year went by after the harassments, the car pooling and the threats and â€Å"the Supreme Court agreed that the bus segregation law was unconstitutional† (864) and the months of boycotting came to an end. The success of the boycott in â€Å"Montgomery depended on steadfast African American involvement† (864). If it wasn’t for the many African American individuals boycotting and carpooling the movement may not have been that successful. Jo Ann Gibson Robinson, who had the courage to stand up for what she believed in, brought much success to the Civil Rights movement as well. The Montgomery Bus Boycott had propositions that reached far beyond the desegregation of public transportation. The boycott impelled the Civil Rights Movement into national awareness and helped Martin Luther King become a major icon in history. The boycott was â€Å"non-violent, Christian and legal† (62), and that was the greatest weapon of all. Blibliography Garrow, David J. The Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Women who started it. Knoxville: The University of Tennessee, 1987. Print.