Transportation Protests: 1841 to 1992
Reading by Julian Hipkins III and David Busch
The struggle for the desegregation of transportation has a long history in the United States. This timeline outlines some key individuals and organizations who took a stand against segregated transit.
The Rebellious Lives of Mrs. Rosa Parks
Lesson by Bill Bigelow
In this mixer lesson, students learn about Rosa Parks' many decades of activism by taking on roles from various times in her life. In this way, students learn about her radicalism before, during, and long after the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
The Politics of Children’s Literature: What’s Wrong with the Rosa Parks Myth
Reading by Herbert Kohl
A critical analysis that challenges the myths in children’s books about Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Montgomery Bus Boycott: Organizing Strategies and Challenges
Teaching Activity by Alana D. Murray
In this activity for middle and high school, students act as organizers and learn about many of the challenges faced by the group who sustained the Montgomery Bus Boycott for 381 days.
What Julian Bond Taught Me
Reading by Jeanne Theoharis
Freedom movements don’t just happen, they are made—and not by charismatic leaders, but by everyday people possessing great courage. Reflections on what Julian Bond taught us about how social movements are built and sustained.
Our Grandparents’ Civil Rights Era
Teaching Idea by Willow McCormick
Students write letters to grandparents and family friends to ask about their experiences during the Civil Rights Movement.
Teaching the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Reading by Teaching for Change
Students learn that Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat in Montgomery, the buses were desegregated, and the Civil Rights Movement was launched. The disconnect between Parks’ arrest and the 381-day boycott creates the illusion that it was a spontaneous response to her civil disobedience. This, however, discounts the strategic brilliance and courage of the African American community in Montgomery.
Children’s Book on Ella Baker: A SNCC Veteran’s Review
Reading by Judy Richardson
A critical review of the picture book, Lift as You Climb: The Story of Ella Baker.