December 1, 1955. Rosa Parks quietly refuses to give up her seat on a downtown bus in Montgomery, Alabama, and sparks a series of events that ignite the civil rights movement and forever change our nation’s history. As we celebrate the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we reflect on the 70th anniversary of the historic Montgomery Bus Boycott, the first successful and large-scale demonstration of nonviolent resistance in America.
In his memoir, Stride Toward Freedom, Dr. King chronicled the story of the Montgomery community of allies, activists and everyday people who “took to heart the principles of nonviolence, who learned to fight for their rights with the weapon of love, and who, in the process, acquired a new estimate of their own human worth.” The boycott required incredible courage, diplomacy, patience and faith. There were significant sacrifices made by community members who came together to provide essential resources, such as alternate transportation and legal aid. Amid court challenges, arrests and death threats, Dr. King provided calm leadership, unwavering in his commitment to nonviolence as the path to justice.
Dr. King was famously inspired by the pacifist philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, but also by the courage of ordinary people, such as Rosa Parks (and her predecessor, Claudette Colvin), whose acts of passive resistance catalyzed a community to fight injustice. The boycott lasted 381 days, and eventually led to the desegregation of buses in the state of Alabama after a Supreme Court ruling. Courage is contagious!
We invite you to join us in celebrating the legacy of Dr. King and other important civil rights leaders. The RCC Diversity Programming Board is sponsoring and participating in the following events during the MLK holiday weekend:
Saturday, Jan. 17 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Grants Pass High School:
- Community Gathering hosted by Grants Pass Remembrance: Creative Presentation and Community Fair
Monday, Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. at Newman United Methodist Church in Grants Pass:
- MLK Day Celebration: Inspiring Evening of Story and Song with a reception to follow sponsored by RCC’s Diversity Programming Board
- Keynote speaker: Rev. Joseph Wallace-Williams
We hope to see you!
For more information, please contact Lucia Bartscher, chair of the RCC Diversity Programming Board, via email or 541-956-7124.