Montgomery Bus Boycott

Introduction

Sparked by the arrest of Rosa Parks on 1 December 1955, the Montgomery bus boycott was a 13–month mass protest that ended with the United States Supreme Court ruling that segregation on public buses is unconstitutional. The bus boycott demonstrated the potential for nonviolent mass protest to successfully challenge racial segregation and served as an example for other southern campaigns that followed.

Documents

Document: Montgomery Police Department. Arrest Record For Rosa Parks,  1 December 1955

• Classroom Activity: Rosa Parks; Historical Figure or Legend?
• Encyclopedia: Rosa Parks, Montgomery Bus Boycott
• Document Analysis Worksheet

Document: Robinson, Jo Ann Gibson. (Women's Political Council (WPC)) Announcement, Another Negro Woman has been Arrested — Don't Ride the Bus, 2 December 1955

• Classroom Activity: Redefining Leadership
• Encyclopedia: Montgomery Bus Boycott, Jo Ann Robinson, Women’s Political Council
• Document Analysis Worksheet

Document: King, Martin Luther, Jr. Montgomery Improvement Association Mass Meeting at Holt Street Baptist Church, 5 December 1955

• Classroom Activity: Redefining Leadership
• Encyclopedia: Montgomery Bus Boycott, Martin Luther King, Jr., Philosophy of Nonviolence
• Document Analysis Worksheet

Document: King, Martin Luther, Jr. and William J. Powell. (Montgomery Improvement Association) "Integrated bus suggestions," 19 December 1956

• Classroom Activity: Social Transformation
• Encyclopedia: Montgomery Bus Boycott, Philosophy of Nonviolence
• Document Analysis Worksheet

Lesson Plans

• Montgomery Bus Boycott