[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 140 (Friday, October 28, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2213]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO ROSA PARKS

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. MARTIN T. MEEHAN

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, October 26, 2005

  Mr. MEEHAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in honor of Rosa Louise Parks, a 
woman whose life was exemplified by quiet courage, strength and 
conviction.
  During her 92 years, Ms. Parks impressed all that all of us with a 
sense of the possible. It was possible to change Alabama segregation 
law by refusing to give up a bus seat, it was possible to change Jim 
Crow across America, and it was possible to do all this in a non-
violent fashion.
  Her refusal to rise from her seat and subsequent arrest led to the 
381-day Montgomery Bus Boycott and to the eventual repeal of the 
segregation laws of the South. Her individual act of defiance is 
considered by many to be the beginning of the civil rights movement.
  It would be easy to remember Rosa Parks solely for this event. 
However, her legacy is so much more. I will remember her as someone who 
was deeply committed to equality. I will remember her as someone who 
never sought out personal attention, yet whose great actions attracted 
admiration from all quarters. I will remember her as a role model and 
as a great American.
  However, without a doubt the best way that we can honor the life of 
Rosa Parks is not by erecting monuments or parading up and down the 
main streets of American towns and cities. This is not to say that we 
shouldn't honor her in this manner, but rather, we should continue her 
life's work and try to live by the ideals that she shared with all of 
us.
  We should encourage grassroots democracy for positive change in our 
districts. We should encourage non-violent action, to resist 
intolerance and discrimination much as Ms. Parks did. Above all, we 
should encourage Americans to continue the fight for civil rights and 
equality.
  The freedoms we enjoy today are because of the sacrifice of 
exceptional individuals like Rosa Parks who stood up to oppression and 
changed history. But Rosa Parks's greatest legacy is that she taught 
generations that acts of courage can precipitate great change.
  Let us celebrate the lifetime achievements of a truly remarkable 
woman.

                          ____________________