# 3937e FDC - 2005 37c To Form a More Perfect Union: Montgomery Bus Boycott
37¢ 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott
To Form a More Perfect Union
City: Washington, DC
Printing Method: Lithographed
Color: Multicolored
Birth Of Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks grew up in Alabama at a time when segregation was a way of life. She attended poorly funded schools for black children, while the white students went to newer schools. She dropped out of high school to care for her mother and grandmother who were ill. Later, she earned a high school diploma, something only seven percent of African Americans were able to do at the time.
In 1943, Parks and her husband joined the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), and she was elected secretary. During the summer of 1955, Parks attended the Highlander Folk School, which trained activists working for racial equality.
On December 1 of that year, Parks put her training into practice. After finishing her shift as a seamstress in a local department store, she boarded a city bus and sat in the “colored” section near the middle of the bus. When the white-only seats were filled, the driver told the passengers in Parks’ row to give up their seats. She refused to move and was arrested.
The appeal process progressed slowly through the Alabama courts. The bus boycott continued for over a year, severely damaging the finances of the bus company. The city later repealed the law that permitted segregation on buses.
Parks suffered from dementia in her later years and died in Detroit on October 24, 2005. She was the first woman and second African American to lie in honor at the US Capitol after her death.
37¢ 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott
To Form a More Perfect Union
City: Washington, DC
Printing Method: Lithographed
Color: Multicolored
Birth Of Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks grew up in Alabama at a time when segregation was a way of life. She attended poorly funded schools for black children, while the white students went to newer schools. She dropped out of high school to care for her mother and grandmother who were ill. Later, she earned a high school diploma, something only seven percent of African Americans were able to do at the time.
In 1943, Parks and her husband joined the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), and she was elected secretary. During the summer of 1955, Parks attended the Highlander Folk School, which trained activists working for racial equality.
On December 1 of that year, Parks put her training into practice. After finishing her shift as a seamstress in a local department store, she boarded a city bus and sat in the “colored” section near the middle of the bus. When the white-only seats were filled, the driver told the passengers in Parks’ row to give up their seats. She refused to move and was arrested.
The appeal process progressed slowly through the Alabama courts. The bus boycott continued for over a year, severely damaging the finances of the bus company. The city later repealed the law that permitted segregation on buses.
Parks suffered from dementia in her later years and died in Detroit on October 24, 2005. She was the first woman and second African American to lie in honor at the US Capitol after her death.