[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 618 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 618

   Observing the 100th birthday of civil rights icon Rosa Parks and 
                       commemorating her legacy.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 13, 2012

Mr. Levin (for himself, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Alexander, Ms. 
Landrieu, Mr. Cochran, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Shelby, Mr. Cornyn, Mrs. Boxer, 
 Mrs. Murray, Mr. Coburn, Mr. Kerry, Mrs. Hutchison, Mrs. Gillibrand, 
Mr. Leahy, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Reid, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Pryor, 
 Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Conrad, 
Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Kohl, Ms. Cantwell, Mrs. McCaskill, Mr. Wyden, Mr. 
Coons, Mr. Baucus, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Manchin, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Cardin, 
Mrs. Hagan, Mr. Casey, Mr. Begich, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Warner, Mr. Udall 
 of New Mexico, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Inouye, Mr. Corker, Mr. Johnson of 
South Dakota, Mr. Franken, Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. Udall of Colorado, Mr. 
   Blumenthal, Mr. Akaka, Mr. Reed, and Mrs. Shaheen) submitted the 
   following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
                               Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Observing the 100th birthday of civil rights icon Rosa Parks and 
                       commemorating her legacy.

Whereas Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee, 
        Alabama, the first child of James and Leona (Edwards) McCauley;
Whereas Rosa Parks dedicated her life to the cause of universal human rights and 
        truly embodied the love of humanity and freedom;
Whereas Rosa Parks was arrested on December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, for 
        refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a White man, and her stand for 
        equal rights became legendary;
Whereas news of the arrest of Rosa Parks resulted in approximately 42,000 
        African-Americans boycotting Montgomery buses for 381 days, beginning on 
        December 5, 1955, until the bus segregation law was changed on December 
        21, 1956;
Whereas the United States Supreme Court ruled on November 13, 1956, that the 
        Montgomery segregation law was unconstitutional, and on December 20, 
        1956, Montgomery officials were ordered to desegregate buses;
Whereas the civil rights movement led to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Public 
        Law 88-352; 78 Stat. 241), which broke down the barrier of legal 
        discrimination against African-Americans and made equality before the 
        law a reality for all people of the United States;
Whereas Rosa Parks has been honored as the ``first lady of civil rights'' and 
        the ``mother of the freedom movement'', and her quiet dignity ignited 
        the most significant social movement in the history of the United 
        States;
Whereas, in 1987, Rosa Parks and her close associate Elaine Steele cofounded the 
        Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development to motivate and 
        direct youth to achieve their highest potential through Rosa Parks' 
        philosophy of ``quiet strength'' and cross-cultural exposure for 
        nurturing a global and inclusive perspective;
Whereas Rosa Parks was the recipient of many awards and accolades for her 
        efforts on behalf of racial harmony, including the Congressional Gold 
        Medal, the Spingarn Award, which is the highest honor of the National 
        Association for the Advancement of Colored People for civil rights 
        contributions, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is the 
        highest civilian honor in the United States, and was named one of the 20 
        most influential and iconic figures of the 20th century;
Whereas Rosa Parks sparked one of the largest movements in the United States 
        against racial segregation, and by her quiet courage symbolizes all that 
        is vital about nonviolent protest because of the way she endured threats 
        of death and persisted as an advocate for the basic lessons she taught 
        the people of the United States;
Whereas Rosa Parks and her husband Raymond Parks relocated to Michigan in 1957, 
        and remained in Michigan until the death of Rosa Parks on October 24, 
        2005;
Whereas, on Tuesday, October 26, 2005 the United States Senate adopted a 
        Resolution expressing its condolences on the passing of Rosa Parks, and 
        honored her life and accomplishments;
Whereas, in recognition of the historic contributions of Rosa Parks, her remains 
        were placed in the rotunda of the Capitol from October 30 to October 31, 
        2005, so that the people of the United States could pay their last 
        respects to this great American;
Whereas, in November 2005, Congress authorized the Joint Committee on the 
        Library to procure a statue of Rosa Parks to be placed in the Capitol;
Whereas the United States Postal Service will issue a stamp in February 2013 to 
        honor Rosa Parks and her courage to act at a pivotal moment in the civil 
        rights movement;
Whereas, the bus on which Rosa Parks sparked a new era in the American quest for 
        freedom and equality is one of the most significant artifacts of the 
        American civil rights movement and is on permanent display in the Henry 
        Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan;
Whereas, on February 4, 2013, the Henry Ford Museum, will commemorate the 100th 
        birthday of Rosa Parks by calling for a National Day of Courage and 
        sponsoring a program that highlights her contributions to the civil 
        rights movement, including a day-long celebration, with both virtual and 
        on-site activities featuring nationally recognized speakers, musical and 
        dramatic interpretative performances, a panel presentation of ``Rosa's 
        Story'' and a reading of the tale ``Quiet Strength'', featuring the 
        actual bus on which Rosa Parks sat as the centerpiece in commemorating 
        Rosa Parks' extraordinary life and accomplishments, and affording 
        everyone the opportunity to board the bus and sit in the seat that Rosa 
        Parks refused to give up; and
Whereas the Rosa Parks Museum at Troy University and the Mobile Studio will 
        commemorate the birthday of Rosa Parks with the 100th Birthday Wishes 
        Project, culminating on February 4, 2013, with a 100th birthday 
        celebration at the Davis Theatre for the Performing Arts in Montgomery, 
        Alabama, where 2,000 birthday wishes submitted by individuals throughout 
        the United States will be transformed into 200 graphic messages: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) observes the 100th birthday of civil rights icon Rosa 
        Parks; and
            (2) commemorates the legacy of Rosa Parks to inspire all 
        people of the United States to stand up for freedom and the 
        principles of the Constitution.
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