RICHMOND, Va. – A woman’s simple, but powerful and historic act of defiance will be honored here in Richmond.
In celebration of Black History Month, GRTC Transit System will pay special tribute to Rosa Parks on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
December 1, 2013, marked the 58th anniversary of Rosa Parks’ historic act of defiance and civil disobedience on a Montgomery, AL. bus.
On that day in 1955, Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger. She was arrested and fined. Four days later, in response to the Parks arrest, a year-long bus boycott began.
A Supreme Court ruling that segregation on public transportation was illegal is what finally ended the year-long boycott.
Parks, considered “the mother” of the Civil Rights movement, died Oct. 24, 2005, in Detroit, where she had lived since 1957.
GRTC has decided to honor Parks by reserving the first seat of every bus on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015.
Each of the seats will have a commemorative sign displayed on them, honoring both Parks’ legacy and her dedication to the Civil Rights Movement.
In addition, all GRTC buses will keep their headlights on the entire day, and the head signs of each bus will rotate with a special message honoring Rosa Parks.
The GRTC Transit System’s website, ridegrtc.com, will feature information on the tribute to Parks.
