« …all of us, regardless of the color of our skin, are created equal by God. »
On Dec. 1,1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama. While she wasn’t the first to be arrested for defying the law, she quickly became an icon, and her action served as a catalyst for a series of events that shaped the modern world.
On Saturday, to mark the 62nd anniversary of her brave decision, President Donald Trump used his weekly address to highlight the impact Parks has left on our society.
“Rosa Parks remained strong and stayed in her seat to defend the truth etched into our Declaration of Independence that all of us, regardless of the color of our skin, are created equal by God,” he said.
Trump explained Parks inspired the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. and thousands of others to boycott the city bus service, which resulted in the ordinance being overturned 381 days later.
“Soon, millions of others across the country joined the Civil Rights Movement and helped secure the freedom and equality that is every American’s birthright,” he said. “Today our nation is better, our country more just, and our people more united because of the bravery of Rosa Parks.”
The president added that Parks’s legacy serves as the inspiration for citizens to fight for a brighter future where “every American child — no matter their skin color — can live without fear, dream without limits, and take their rightful place in the great story of our nation.”
According to USA Today, the boycott was supposed to only last a day, but its success led to an extension that lasted over a year. After King encouraged people to join Parks in boycotting the bus system, almost 20,000 passengers refused to ride for the length of the boycott.
Watch the president’s remarks below.
