Aside from Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks is the most famous figure in the American civil rights movement. Unlike Dr. King, however, Rosa Parks was not someone who set out to be a leader. In many ways, that is what makes her so interesting. Nowadays, it seems like every major American city has a Rosa Parks Blvd., but it was not always this way. Back in the days of the Montgomery bus strike, she was reviled by much of mainstream society, and ignored by many other people. Although the civil rights movement was gaining steam, it was by no means universally respected. That is why her refusal to sit in the back of the bus was so courageous. It turned out alright, but she really was taking a risk.

After all, back then people were getting lynched for standing up for their beliefs, or even for just being black. The authorities were so corrupt in the South that there was no telling what they would do. For blacks to strike in Montgomery Alabama took some guts. These were not, however, dyed in the wool activists. Instead, they were ordinary people sick of having their rights abused by a corrupt system.

In this day and age, it is easy to forget about the importance of what Rosa Parks did. Civil rights education and Black history month had become a standard part of curriculum in many schools, and as it has become mainstream, the message has been diluted somewhat. The importance of civil rights leaders is not so much what they did in the past, but what their acts can inspire us to do nowadays. It is important to remember that The struggle is not over. We still live in a world rife with injustice and the things that we do matter in creating a better tomorrow.

Nonetheless, just learning about these leaders is sometimes enough to make us aware of the injustices going on right now. Thinking about the Jim Crow laws, for example, sheds some light on modern day tactics of police profiling. Going back even further, looking at the treatment of Chinese and Irish immigrants reflects on the current issues with Mexican immigrants. But in my opinion, Rosa Parks teaches us one of the most valuable lessons of all – that ordinary people can make a big difference by standing up for what is right when no one else will. Sometimes, all it takes is one voice to inspire other people to do what is right.