The Lion's Pride Volume 10 (Spring 2018) | Page 17

and remembered that my arrest, the boycott and the civil rights
movement were no longer among us. I was old, Raymond was old, and
the headlines were long forgotten. Instead, my name was now in grade
school text books. School children were taught that Rosa Parks was a
hero and not a criminal.
The truth is that I will be forever tied to the events that unraveled that
Thursday evening on the bus. In 1955, after I gave up my seat and even
through the boycotts, I was regarded as a criminal. But today, I am a
historical figure. I like to think that God lent me a helping hand because,
"When that white driver stepped back toward us, when he waved his
hand and ordered us up and out of our seats, I felt a determination to
cover my body like a quilt on a winter night." (Williams et al.) On
Thursday, December 1 st of 1955, I committed a “crime” but it was one
that liberated blacks and enforced a movement that led to the demise of
racial segregation.