Rosa Parks Day in the California State Capitol

Friday, Feb. 4, 2011
Rosa Parks Birthday
Join us at the Sacramento Valley Railroad Station
Historic Home of Daniel Blue ~ First Black Church West of the Mississippi
Community Celebration
Sacramento Black History ~ Civil Rights in Transportation
4:00 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011
Sacramento Museum Day ~ Intermodal Transportation Civil Rights
California State Capitol
Capitol Mall and 10th Street
11:00 a.m. ~ 1:00 p.m.
The community is invited to Board a Historic Regional Transit Bus and celebrate California Civil Rights in Public Transportation

Monday, Feb. 7, 2001
Rosa Parks Day in California
California State Capitol
Room 126
5:00 p.m. ~ 7:00 p.m.

Featuring Honorable Delaine Eastin, Former California Superintendent of Public Instruction will share her vision of "Civil Rights and Education"

California Executive Officers, California State Legislative Members and invited guests including the NAACP, Urban League, Black Chamber of Commerce and many other civic responsible organization who benefit from the ongoing journey towards equity and equal opportunity.

Happy Birthday, Rosa Louise McCauley Parks

by Khubaka, Michael Harris

Rosa Parks was born in a terrible time of flagrant racial prejudice and legal discrimination throughout the United States of America.

From the sacred red clay soil of ancient “West Florida” Rosa was born in a place of great destiny, Tuskegee, Alabama and later moved to Montgomery, Alabama to place her mark upon the world stage.

Segregation laws prevented people of African descent from equity and equal opportunity in day to day living, especially in public education and throughout America.

Alabama was admitted to the United States of America after a second round of fighting with British colonization forces in 1812 and after settling Spanish claims to the Port of Mobile Bay.

In the newly established State of Alabama it was legal to enslave people of African descent and use forced agriculture labor to enhance the development of European migrants to the southern region of America, including Irish Scottish immigrants that enslaved many throughout the "Black Belt" of Alabama, including the McCauley family.

After the U.S. Civil War in 1865 and changes to the U.S. Constitution with ratification of the 13th amendment, legal slavery in America was replaced by “Jim Crow laws” throughout the South continuing the challenge and quest for equity and equal opportunity.

Nationwide, people of African descent could not live in the same neighborhoods, use the same drinking fountains, attend public schools or even sit in the front section of buses.

“Whites Only” signs were posted in restaurants and store windows throughout the nation and many demonic forces degraded people of African descent as less than second class citizens.

On December 1, 1955, a seasoned Rosa Parks boarded her usual bus after a long day at a department store where she worked as a seamstress. Like most days, she had to pay the bus fare, get off the bus and go to the back door to the colored seating section, while whites boarded and sat in the front.

On that special day, at rush hour, many people boarded the bus and the bus driver decided to move the sign for the white section demanding black passengers to give up their seats to white passengers.

James Blake, the white bus driver, demanded the black passengers get out of their seats and move to the back. 3 black passengers got up and moved, yet Rosa decided she'd had enough bullying from Blake and was tired of the unfair rules in the transportation system, and would not move.

Rosa refused to give up her seat so a white man could sit down and changed the course of his story, forever.

Blake called a white police officer; Rosa Parks was arrested and went to jail. Rosa Parks was convicted on December 4 because of her criminal behavior disobeying the legal system of the day…

The next day community leaders gathered to plan what to do about the incident led by a Council of Organized Women. They decided that on December 5, nobody would ride the bus; instead, they walked and used carpools.

Everyone stayed off the bus for 381 days, and today that collective action is known worldwide as the Montgomery Boycott, in the original capitol of the Confederate States of America, “the Heart of Dixie” the crimson tide was changed forever.

During two Christmas seasons of considerable economic and physical hardship, people of African descent were routinely harassed and experienced escalated terrorist violence as the adverse economic impact of over 40,000 unified and determined was felt throughout the region and shook the nation closely watching.

Collective community sacrifice was extremely successful and U.S. Transportation laws began to change reflecting a positive new beginning for Civil Rights and other Human Rights for people of African descent throughout America and the world.

For another half a century, Rosa Parks continued to be a champion for human rights throughout her life by working for many groups and organizations including in the City of Detroit and the Office of U.S. Congressman John Conyers. Her tireless works for over 20 years helped to establish the National Holiday for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rosa Louise McCauley Parks began her transition to the spirit world, on October 24, 2005, and her body laid in state in the U.S. Rotunda, Washington, D.C. the first woman to be given this honor.

Today, many continue to keep her growing legacy alive celebrating Rosa Parks Day, as many work towards erecting a statue of her in the Statuary Hall of the U.S. Capitol.

Happy Birthday Rosa, this African son of the west… will never forget…

2011 is our United Nations International Year for People of African Descent the world is watching...