Rosa Parks

　　On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give her seat on a public bus to a white man. It was a violation of the city's racial segregation laws. Under the leadership of the church, and other associations, a boycott of the municipal bus was begun lasting one year.

　　African Americans constituted 70% of those who used the bus regularly. For the successful campaign, Parks became known as the "mother of the Civil Rights Movement." In 1999, she was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor. This is the highest honor a US citizen can achieve