HOME | POLITICS | SPORTS | LIFE | SCI/TECH | OPEDS | HELPFUL TIPS
|
Oct. 26, 2005 Rosa Parks died earlier this week after years of fighting for social justice causes. December of 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. She was arrested, jailed and fined 14 dollars. A Baptist Minister by the name of Martin King Jr. organized bus boycotts that lasted until buses were desegregated more than a year later. Rosa Parks simple act of courage sparked boycotts of businesses with these unfair practices in many Southern towns across the across the United States . "Our mistreatment was just not right, and I was tired of it," writes Parks in her book, Quiet Strength. A few years ago, I was working as a in-home support service provider for the elderly. I loved listening to elders telling the stories of the history they lived that I read about in books. The agency assigned me to take care of Mr. Thomas. . It was quite an education listening to Mr. Thomas talk to about his personal experiences with the humiliation of Jim Crow Laws. The agency assigned me to care for this man and told me that as a left coast gal, they felt that providing support for a black man would not be an issue with me. On the contrary, It was a blessing to assist this beautiful and gracious gentleman. He loved homemade biscuit and gravy. I would frequently go over to the local diner, purchase his favorite breakfast. I would tell Mr. Thomas that I made them especially for him. I have a feeling that I didn't fool Mr. Thomas one bit. He knew I was no southern cook. He didn't even get mad the first time I burnt the fried apples that he told me how to make. Mr. Thomas told me about the time when black folks were not allowed to eat at that very same diner. They went to the back of the restaurant into a separate place for "colored people," order food, pay for it and left. . After Rosa Parks made the news, the members of the church Mr. Thomas attend followed Mrs. Parks and Reverend King's example of Quiet Strength The congregation of the colored churches in the community made a decision to boycott that diner and other local business that practiced Jim Crow laws. Folks in the black community and beyond followed suit. The businesses missed the money. Slowly things started to change. Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that outlawed discrimination in public accommodations, i.e., privately owned restaurants, hotels and stores, and in private schools and workplaces. Jim Crow laws were no more. I should have taken Mr. Thomas to that Diner and treated him to breakfast. That diner should have given Mr. Thomas biscuits with gravy and fried apples on the house. They own that man amends big time Every morning, Mr. Thomas would listen to a radio program that would play the tune of "The Old Wooden Cross" as they announced the names of folks who crossed over into the spirit world. Intuition told me that in the near future, I would hear his name on that program and I did. Today, I read that Rosa Parks joined Mr. Thomas in the Spirit World. I hope the Angels gave Mrs. Parks a special seat in the front seat of the bus on her trip thorough the Pearly Gates of heaven. I hope there is a special Diner in Heaven where she can meet Mr. Thomas and the folks at his church. They can discuss the changes they spearheaded on Earth. Godspeed to Rosa Parks and Mr. Thomas. I hope the angels don't burn the fried apples in Heaven. ------------ About the author: Bonijean Isaacs is a freelance writer and Astrologer in West Virginia. Email: inez4liberty@gmail.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
