Montgomery Bus Boycott
December 5, 1955 was the start of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The boycott was a social and political protest against racial segregation in Montgomery, Alabama bus system. This was a very important action of Black solidarity the Monday after Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus. Did you know, Rosa Parks history included being told by white bus driver to board at the back then he drove off without letting her through back door. Yes, Rosa Parks had that experience of being treated poorly like others and probably many more experiences that destined her action.
Before the boycott, Blacks were to sit in the back of the bus and had to give up their seat if a white person needed one. Some white drivers mistreated their Black passengers and would short-change them and leave them stranded. Some believe the bus drivers acted this way because of the Brown vs Board of Education leading some to join the White Citizens Council(white supremacists). Another example of concerted racial efforts is the Jim Crow laws, the bus ridership was 75% Black but the bus system did not employ Black drivers.
A federal law suit filed in U. S. District Court ruled that “the enforced segregation of black and white passengers on motor buses operating in the City of Montgomery violates the Constitution and laws of the United States” because the conditions deprived people of equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment (Wikipedia). On June 13, 1956, the U. S. District Court ordered Alabama and Montgomery from continuing to operate segregated buses. Of course, the decision was appealed by the state and city and heard in the Supreme Court. On November 13, 1956 the Supreme Court upheld District Court ruling and ordered Alabama and Montgomery to desegregate the bus system. It was not upheld until on December 20, 1956 when federal Marshalls delivered the order to desegregate.
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