3 Possible Reasons Why Rosa Parks Refused to Give Up Her Seat

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks boarded a bus in Montgomery, Alabama and instead of going to the back of the bus,where colored people were supposed to sit at that time, she sat in the front. The bus driver then asked her to move and she refused which led to her arrest. Here are three possible reasons to why she refused to move.

3. She was Tired.

This assumption was made by many but she worked a lot and rode the bus consistently so of course she was always tired, but would make that day different than any other day? 

2. She thought the bus driver was cute and wanted to get his attention.

Rosa Parks had been married since she was 19 and relationships can get boring sometimes. In 1942 she clashed with bus driver James Blake when she entered through and paid her fare but instead of going back out and entering through the colored entrance she attempted to proceed to her seat when  he pulled her coat sleeve then she exited the bus. Although she was still a bit salty for the incident 12 years before Rosa may have decided to shoot her shot and see if he remembered her and what better way to get his attention than to break the law. 

1.She didn’t believe she should have to move because of her race. 

Rosa Parks’ resistance ignited the Montgomery Bus Boycott one the largest social movements in history. Many have just assumed she was tired or old but that was not the case. Parks stated:“People always say that I didn’t give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn’t true. I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.” Although she was put in jail and lost her jobs for participating in the bus boycott by refusing to give up her seat she lit the fire in the effort in segregation and attain equal rights for all. 

If the internet specifically BuzzFeed was around during this time period different things occurring during the Civil Rights Movement may have been perceived differently depending on the way they were presented. All people were able to do was read about it in the news papers, hear about it on the radio, or simply hear about it through word of mouth. Social media would have been able to spread the word of things going on and the Montgomery Bus Boycott could have lead to other bus boycotts and other acts of standing up for what’s right.  The internet is a powerful place and if used for good change could happen.

Resources: https://www.achievement.org/achiever/rosa-parks/