The Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955-1960 (Edexcel GCSE History): Revision Note

Timeline

Summary

The refusal by a Black woman to give up her seat for a White passenger on a segregated bus sparked a protest that made headlines around the world. It also led to the Supreme Court ruling that segregation on buses, just like in education, broke the Constitution. The protests caused by the arrest of Rosa Parks in December 1955 saw Martin Luther King emerge as a leader of the civil rights movement, proved the effectiveness of peaceful direct action and led to Congress passing the Civil Rights Act in 1957.

Who was Rosa Parks?

• Rosa Parks was a Black woman who became an important figure in the civil rights struggle after being arrested for refusing to move seats on a segregated bus        

  • Born in 1913, she joined the NAACP in 1943 and took part in several civil rights campaigns 

  • At the time of her arrest, she was secretary of the NAACP chapter in Montgomery, Alabama 

 The significance of Rosa Parks

• There was enormous publicity around her arrest 

• Her arrest triggered the protests 

  • The protests led to the desegregation of buses

• Rosa was a non-violent, hard-working, middle-aged woman

  • This made it very difficult for opponents of desegregation to attack or criticise her

• She campaigned tirelessly, worked to get people to register to vote and became known as the “Mother of the modern-day Civil Rights Movement”

The Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) & Martin Luther King

• Civil rights activists met in Montgomery on 2 December to discuss their response to Parks’ arrest

  • They formed the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA)

  • Martin Luther King was elected as the chairman

  • He was a pastor from Montgomery, Alabama

  • After meeting with the MIA on 8 December, the bus company still refused to desegregate, so Black passengers continued with the boycott

Causes of the Montgomery Bus Boycott

• The Montgomery Bus Company segregated its buses

  • The front rows were reserved for white people

  • Black people had to sit in the back rows

  • If the bus was full, Black Americans had to give up their seats for white people

• There had been demands from the Women’s Political Council (WPC) for this to stop which were ignored by the bus company

• On 1 December 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat for a White passenger 

• Rosa was arrested and fined $14

  • Her arrest triggered outrage, and the WPC launched a boycott of the Montgomery Bus Company

Events of the Montgomery Bus Boycott

• On 5 December, 90% of the Black residents of Montgomery supported the boycott by refusing to use the buses

• However, many Black people in Montgomery relied upon the bus to get to work, so alternatives had to be provided

  • The MIA made a deal with taxi companies to charge each passenger the same amount as individual bus tickets

    • This was eventually declared illegal

  • On 12 December, a carpool of over 300 vehicles was organised by MIA to ferry people to the city centre

• The boycott showed no signs of stopping in 1956, so opponents of desegregation increased the intimidation of its leaders

  • On 30 January 1956, Martin Luther King’s home was firebombed with his wife and daughter narrowly avoiding injury

  • On 22^nd February 90 members of the MIA, including Parks and King, were arrested and found guilty of organising an illegal boycott

Parks having her fingerprints taken after arrest for illegal boycott:

• As the boycott continued, the MIA went to court to argue that segregation on buses went against the Constitution

  • On 5 June, a federal district court agreed and ruled that bus segregation, just like segregation in schools, was unconstitutional 

  • The bus company appealed the decision and it went to the Supreme Court

• When the Supreme Court reached its verdict on 13 November 1956

  • It upheld the federal district court’s decision

  • The bus company was ordered to desegregate

• On 20 December 1956, the MIA called an end to the boycott

• After 340 days, the boycott had succeeded

  • Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks and others travelled on a desegregated bus 

Why did the Montgomery Bus Boycott succeed?

• There are several reasons why the Montgomery Bus Boycott was a success

Impacts of the Montgomery Bus Boycott 

• The Montgomery Bus Boycott saw Martin Luther King emerge as a leader of the Civil Rights movement

  • The boycott proved that non-violent direct action was an effective way to bring about change

  • It also proved that Black Americans were determined and organised

• The victories in Montgomery and Brown v. Topeka led to Congress passing the Civil Rights Act in 1957

  • This was the first Civil Rights Act in 82 years and reflected how attitudes and opinions in American society had changed

  • Many White Americans were still against it

  • It was also criticised by some Black Americans for not going far enough