[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 164 (Wednesday, December 19, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8232-S8233]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               OBSERVING THE 100TH BIRTHDAY OF ROSA PARKS

  Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 
618 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 618) observing the 100th birthday of 
     civil rights icon Rosa Parks and commemorating her legacy.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, over a half century ago, Rosa Parks sparked 
a revolution in American race relations when she decided that she would 
no longer tolerate the humiliation and demoralization of racial 
segregation on a bus. The strength and spirit of this courageous woman 
captured the consciousness of not only the American people but the 
entire world. Her stand on that December day in 1955 was not an 
isolated incident but part of a lifetime of struggle for equality and 
justice. Twelve years earlier, in 1943, Rosa Parks had been arrested 
for violating another one of the city's bus related segregation laws 
requiring blacks to pay their fares at the front of the bus then get 
off of the bus and re-board from the rear of the bus. The driver of 
that bus was the same driver with whom she would have her confrontation 
years later.
  Rosa Parks, by her quiet courage, symbolizes all that is vital about 
nonviolent protest, as she endured threats of death and persisted as an 
advocate for the simple, basic lessons she taught the Nation and from 
which the Nation has benefitted immeasurably. The bus boycott which 
Rosa Parks began was the beginning of an American revolution that 
elevated the status of African Americans nationwide and introduced to 
the world a young leader who would one day have a national holiday 
declared in his honor, the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.
  February 4, 2013, marks the 100th Anniversary of the birth of Rosa 
Parks. In recognition of this occasion, I am immensely proud to be 
joined by 56 bipartisan cosponsors of S. Res. 618, which was just 
adopted unanimously by the Senate, observing the 100th birthday of Rosa 
Parks and commemorating her legacy. I am especially pleased to have had 
the input of Senators Stabenow, Sessions, and Alexander in the crafting 
of this resolution, which is befitting one who so significantly 
contributed to the breaking down the barriers of legal discrimination 
against African Americans, and equality for us all.
  Although Rosa Parks will be forever associated with one day in 
Montgomery, AL, she lived most of her life in my home state of 
Michigan, and we proudly claim her as our own. She continued to 
dedicate her life to advancing equal opportunity and to educating our 
youth about the past struggles for freedom, from slavery up to the 
civil rights movement of the 1960s.
  In 1987, Rosa Parks and Elaine Steele co-founded the Rosa and Raymond 
Parks Institute for Self-Development. Its primary focus has been 
working with young people from across the country and the world as part 
of the ``Pathways to Freedom'' program. With the work of the Institute, 
we can truly say that in addition to having played a major role in 
shaping America's past and present, Rosa Parks is continuing to help 
shape America's future.
  In the spirit of the enormous contributions of Rosa Parks to this 
Nation, the Henry Ford Museum of Dearborn, MI 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. The activities will include 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,'' and will feature 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.
  Mr. President, in November of 2005, upon her passing, Rosa Parks 
became the first woman in the history of the United States to lie in 
honor in the Capitol Rotunda. And, a few years earlier on June 15, 
1999, Rosa Parks was presented with the highest honor of Congress, the 
Congressional Gold Medal, of which I was pleased to coauthor. I was 
also pleased to be a part of the effort in directing the Architect of 
the Capitol to commission a statue of Rosa Parks, which will soon be 
placed in the U.S. Capitol, making her the second African American 
woman to receive such an honor.
  Mr. President, the cosponsors of the resolution are: Senators 
Stabenow, Sessions, Alexander, Landrieu, Cochran, Harkin, Shelby, 
Cornyn, Boxer, Murray, Coburn, Kerry, Hutchison, Gillibrand, Mr. Leahy, 
Sanders, Reid, Mikulski, Durbin, Pryor, Nelson of Florida, Brown of 
Ohio, Lieberman, Mr. Conrad, Lautenberg, Kohl, Cantwell, McCaskill, 
Wyden, Coons, Baucus, Whitehouse, Manchin, Bennet, Cardin, Hagan, 
Casey, Begich, Menendez, Warner, Udall of New Mexico, Klobuchar, 
Inouye, Corker, Johnson of South Dakota, Franken, Rockefeller, Udall of 
Colorado, Blumenthal, Akaka, Reed, Shaheen, Webb, McCain, Lugar, and 
Grassley.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am pleased the Senate will agree to S. 
Res. 618, a resolution observing the 100th birthday of civil rights 
icon Rosa Parks, and commemorating her legacy. It is hard to believe 
that 57 years have passed since Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat 
on a public bus, a heroic act for a young woman from Tuskegee, AL, who 
joined so many in the fight for civil rights. I am proud of the 
progress this country has made toward equality for all, in large part 
thanks to the work and inspiration of leaders like Rosa Parks, although 
we as a Nation have more work to do.
  Rosa's brave act of defiance inspired a city-wide boycott and 
national movement, and she remains an important symbol of the civil 
rights movement to this day. Her legacy reminds Vermonters and 
Americans all over the country that one brave voice or action can shine 
a light on injustice and challenge society to accept nothing less than 
freedom and equality for all mankind.
  In 2006 I was proud to work to reauthorize one of the most important 
civil rights laws in our history and to have that voting rights 
legislation bare Rosa Parks' name. Unfortunately, some are trying to 
overturn that protective and important law despite the continuing 
threat to the right to vote. As we commemorate her birth 100 years ago, 
I hope we can all agree that threats to civil rights are not a relic of 
the past. To honor Rosa Parks' memory, we must continue to fight to 
ensure that all Americans can vote and have their vote counted. I thank 
Senator Levin for submitting this resolution and am proud to join him 
in commemorating the legacy of Rosa Parks.
  Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or 
debate, and any statements be placed in the Record.
  The resolution (S. Res. 618) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 618

       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

[[Page S8233]]

     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.

  Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I ask that Senator Webb be added as a 
cosponsor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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