The Woman Who Changed a Nation The Woman Who Changed a Nation
February, Black History Month, seemed a relevant time to evaluate youth
and their sense of history. But Parks thinks bigger and broader. "We don't have
enough young people who are concerned and whoare exposed to the civil rights movement, and
I would like to see more exposure and get their interest,"she says, pausing to
reflect, "but I think it should just be history, period, and not thinking in terms of
only Black History Month." Rosa Parks is quiet, soft-spoken, and diplomatic. But she
is firm in her belief that enough people will have the courage and dedication to make this
country better than it is. " Parks has met many renowned leaders and has traveled
throughout the world receiving honors and awards for her efforts toward racial harmony.
She is appreciative and honored by them but exhibits little emotion over whom she has met
or what she has done. Her response to being called "the Mother of the Civil Rights
Movement" is modest. "If people think of me in that way, I just accept the honor
and appreciate it," she says. In Quiet Strength, however, Parks is careful to explain
that she did not change things alone. "Four decades later I am still uncomfortable
with the credit given to me for starting the bus boycott. I would like [people] to know I
was not the only person involved. I was just one of many who fought for freedom."
After the death of her husband in 1987, she founded the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self-Development, which offers guidance to young blacks and sponsors an annual summer program, called Pathways to Freedom. The program enables young people from many different ethnic backgrounds to tour the country in buses, under adult supervision, and learn the history of their country and of the civil rights movement. The purpose of the Institute is to motivate and direct kids to achieve their highest potential, and to teach more people about important issues that affect thefuture of the world. "
In August 1994, Parks was attacked in her home by a young man who wanted money from her. Of the event, she writes, "I pray for this young man and the conditions in our country that have made him this way. Despite the violence and crime in our society, we should not let fear overwhelm us. We must remain strong." Parks' belief in God and her religious convictions are at the core of everything she does. It is the overriding theme in her book and the message she hopes to impart: "I'd like for [readers] to know that I had a very spiritual background and that I believe in church and my faith and that has helped to give me the strength and courage to live as I did.