Rosa Parks
(aka Sierra W.)

Hi, my name is Rosa Parks. I'm an African American legend. White folks consider me to be black, but when I look at my skin, it looks brown to me, so I prefer the term African American, because I'm proud of my country and proud of my heritage. I grew up in Pine Level, Alabama. When I was a child I was brave. One day, a boy tried to hit me and I picked up a brick and dared him to. My grandmother was very angry with me, because African Americans were not supposed to treat white folk like that.

In 1955, I refused to give up my seat for a white man while riding the bus and I was arrested. Many people thought I wouldn't give up my seat because I was tired from a long day's work. But guess what? I was just tired of white folk pushing us around. African Americans were mad and started to riot. We boycotted the buses. Many people of different races sympathized with us and joined in to support us. Consequently, laws were changed giving African Americans civil rights.

I should be remembered because my actions on that bus caused laws that kept African Americans and white people apart to be changed. In later years, I accompanied other civil right's activists, such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in marches promoting the rights of African Americans, and gave speeches about my arrest. I died October 24, 2005.

I, Sierra, am glad that this happened because if it didn't, I would not be here right now with my friends.

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