Black History Month: Rosa Park's standing up for freedom Saturday, February 18, 2012 By Jenna Durant, Sarah Machelor & Aysia Tyler Rose Parks, African American Seamstress that refused to give up her seat for a white male, was arrested and sent to court. - Associated Press Advertising Rosa Parks was born on February 4th 1913 in Tuskegee, Alabama. Her father, James McCauley, was a carpenter. Her mother, Leona McCauley, was a teacher. When Rosa was only two years old she moved to live with her grandparents on their farm in Pine Level, Alabama.    The Montgomery, Alabama city law stated that all public transportation be segregated and that bus drivers “had the power of a police officer.” Assigned seating was given, separated by a line. This left African Americans in the back of the buses and White people in the front. If more white people boarded the buses than expected, some African Americans were asked to give up their seats.  On December 1, 1995, Rosa Parks boarded the Cleveland Avenue bus to head home. She sat in the first row allowed for ‘colored’ people. As the bus began to fill more and more with white passengers, the bus driver noticed there were a few white people standing in the aisle. He then stopped the bus, and proceeded to the back of the bus to move the divider between whites and blacks. Then, asked four colored passengers to move. Three obeyed the command, but Rosa remained seated. The driver then said “Why don’t you stand up?”  Rosa replied, “I don’t think I should have to stand up.” The bus driver then called the police and had Rosa arrested for refusing to give up her seat. Later that night Rosa was released on bail, and summoned to court on December 8, where she was found guilty of violating the law. She was fined $10, plus a $4 court fee.

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