Rosa Parks (1913-2005), an American department-store seamstress, set off the civil rights movement that overthrew Jim Crow (American apartheid) when she refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in 1955. By the 1990s she was a sainted figure of American history, the kind that schoolchildren have to do reports on. In Caucasian Mythology she and Martin Luther King ended racism in America.
On Thursday December 1st 1955 on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks, a black woman, refused to give up her seat to a white man:
I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.
The driver threatened to call the police. She said, “You may do that,” pushing her wire frame glasses back up her nose. She was the secretary of the city’s NAACP! They’ve messed with the wrong one now.
She was the perfect victim: she was “a churchgoer who looked like the symbol of Mother’s Day”. She had nothing the press could destroy her name with – no child out-of-wedlock like Claudette Colvin, no drunken father like Mary Louise Smith, both of whom were arrested for the same thing earlier that year.
Part of what made Parks determined was Emmett Till: a 14-year-old black boy whom two white men savagely beat and killed in August for whistling at a white woman. The all-white jury found them not guilty. They walked free. The picture of what remained of Emmett Till’s face was burned into the brain of probably every grown black person in the country.
Parks was arrested on a Thursday. Over the weekend the Women’s Political Council, the NAACP and the black churches got the word out to every black person in the city not to ride the buses on Monday. Monday came and in the dark December morning the buses rolled down the streets – empty! Bus after bus. Black Montgomery stood solidly behind her!
And not just on that day but on the 380 days that followed – till the Supreme Court forced the bus company to let blacks sit wherever they wanted.
A young, unknown pastor was chosen as the leader of the Montgomery Bus Boycott because he had no enemies: Dr Martin Luther King, Jr.
Montgomery Fair, the department store Parks worked for, fired her. Few in the city would hire her or her husband, a barber. They moved to Detroit where her brother lived. From 1965 till she retired in 1987 she worked as a secretary for John Conyers, a black Congressman. The 1967 Detroit riot broke out a mile from her house.
She was at the March on Washington in 1963, Selma in 1965 and the Million Man March in 1995.
When she died in 2005 at 92 she became the first woman ever to lie in state in the Capitol building, just like the presidents.
See also:
Thank you, Miss Parks.
We will never forget, what you have done for civil rights in America.
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“Over the weekend the Women’s Political Council, the NAACP and the black churches got the word out to every black person in the city not to ride the buses on Monday. Monday came and in the dark December morning the buses rolled down the streets – empty! Bus after bus. Black Montgomery stood solidly behind her!”
*******
Massive Black Solidarity!!
Black Power…
Where did it go?
Did it die with MLK Jr and Malcolm X?
Seems so.
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In Caucasian Mythology she and Martin Luther King ended racism in America.
Nice!
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“In caucasian mythology Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King ended rascism. lol! This is a good post. Miss Parks is a major civil rights icon. But I didn’t know about the women before her. Who refused to give up their seats on the bus. I don’t think it’s right not to recognize them. So they are just a blip in the history of the civil rights movement.
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What an amazing, inspirational woman! Ms. Parks mentioned in her autobiography that she didn’t get up from her seat not because she was physically tired, but that she was “tired of giving in”. Gosh, I admire her courage and fortitude in the face of oppression. She made a difference.
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Well those black people showed solidarity. Unfortunately there is no solidarity today like it was demostrated then.
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Another incredible person in history that whites love to bring up when trying to prove they aren’t racist, yet are always missing the point of why they did what they did.
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How dare they! Ms. Parks was standing up for what she believed in and they fired her! Oh, no, they couldn’t have that! It must’ve been karma because Montgomery Fair has been turned into a parking lot.
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I wonder if Claudette Colvin and Mary Louise Smith are bitter because Miss Parks got all the recognition?
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I’ve always heard two versions of the Rosa Parks story.
Version#1 She was coming from work after a long hard day and decided to sit in the white section of the bus. Then when asked to get up Rosa Parks refused.
Version#2 Rosa Parks sat in the colored section of the bus, but when more white passengers came on the bus driver asked that she give up her seat to a white man.
I remember having this discussion with one of my teachers and she said it was version #1, but I was taught by my parents that it was version #2
So just curious from the Abagond audience which version is the truth?
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I always feel that no matter where she came from if it was planned or just happened she had the guts to do it. Things could have gone horrible wrong. I look at poor Emmet Till (wasn’t his grave in the news a while back) who comes from my home town and I think 14 and a really f-n horrible way to die. I know he would rather be alive then the gun shot that put in action the Civil Rights. That is what gets me, sure Rosa Parks was brave but Emmet he was still a kid and he could have been anyone of us. Just 14.
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Black people still get together and do marches or protests though I guess shows the problem, this is a very specific act that could have a serious financial influence on something.
The Black People of that era didn’t just protest, they protested with intent or a specific action in mind.
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In Caucasian Mythology she and Martin Luther King ended racism in America.
Spot on!
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@ life learner
Version #2 is closer to the truth.
The bus was divided into three sections:
front: whites only
middle: coloured but white on demand
back: coloured
If the whites-only section became full the bus driver would clear out the middle section a row at a time for whites as needed.
Rosa Parks in 1955 was in the first row of the middle section. So were three other blacks. When the driver needed that row for whites, those three got up and stood in the back. Rosa Parks stayed and slid over to take the window seat. There were three other empty seats for the white man to sit down in, but that would mean he would have to sit in the same row as a black person. The driver called the police.
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Note that the driver was making four black people stand, some of them women, so one white man could sit down!
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I think Paul Kersey said it the best
We already know that more than 100 bus drivers in the Detroit Department of Transportation (DDOT) refused to work because “they were scared for their lives” after numerous attacks on the Black drivers by young Black people. Instead of driving their routes, they stayed in the Rosa Parks Transit Center (not to be confused with the Rosa Park Hempstead Transit Center in Long Island) without one employee realizing the irony of the situation.
Like Martin Luther King Drive’s or Martin Luther King Street’s across the nation, and the violence and low property value found on these hallowed streets, it’s a safe bet that any city with a Rosa Parks Bus Terminal is one that has a lousy public transportation system (which is the primary reason that highways are full of cars inching along the expressway, as riding public transportation is not a healthy option).
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@ Peanut
I knew about Morgan v Virginia but not about the woman behind it. Thanks.
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Enjoying your blog abagond. I appreciate my elders for everything that was done to help improve the lives of the younger generation. I agree with you, it’s still not over and I’m reluctant to think it ever will be. You can log onto YouTube, Yahoo, and other popular web media and see what they still think of us. It’s more subtle now it was blatant then.
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great post abagond.
I love and respect people like rosa parks and bessie coleman.I wonder what happened to that unitedness.blacks back then were united like if u mess with one u mess with all,now its every man for himself and everyone’s a hater. Its amazing to me how ppl back then were so driven even when they were intimidated they kept their eye on the prize.
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@ Abagond
Thanks for that clarification. *Satisfied grin, right about now* 😀
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“It must’ve been karma because Montgomery Fair has been turned into a parking lot.” leigh
It was karma alright. Blacks move in and businesses move out.
I wonder why?
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@ Churchs,
Really? Classy.
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Happy birthday, to an icon. Today she would have been 100 years old. Rest in Peace.
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“It was karma alright. Blacks move in and businesses move out.
I wonder why?”
WHITE FLIGHT.I must say the asians and indians businesses move right on in when the whites leave and make good money.
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Agabond,
When I find that someone has nothing better to do but try desperately to pick a fight with me, I usually walk away and let them talk to themselves. So my question is, do you have a special place where trolls can be sent to enjoy the echo of there childish vitriol? Something like a church confessional?
I await our response.
Anne
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@enlightened…. I agree we still have a long way to go as white people. But you are being very selective when referring to hateful comments on youtube yahoo etc. Because there is a ridiculous amount of white hate and moronic racist anti white racism on all blogs and the sites you mentioned. And guess what there is no difference in power between two hateful morons arguing with each other on the web. No matter if they are black, white, and yes the new phenomenon of morons yellow and brown. You probably turn a blind eye to the other way around cause it doesn’t piss you off. Doesn’t mean it’s not there and rampant.
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The reason why black people are as united as they used to be is because white people aren’t as blatantly racist as they used too be.
Just like on this blog as mentioned by posters a lot of black people nowadays may not have their first instance of blatant racism until their 20’s or 30’s whereas back in the day it was 24/7 from birth up having to deal w/racist bull shit.
That means you have people who aren’t going to be motivated or knowingly affected by racism for possibly a decade or so into their adult life if they are lucky.
That and less racism means more opportunities, more opportunities means less people have desire to rock the boat so to speak.
And as the black part of the economy starts to do better you have a greater social and cultural divide among the different black economic classes.
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“I must say the asians and indians businesses move right on in when the whites leave and make good money.” MsTooGood4Yall
Yeah. Blacks love Asian businesses.
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@V-4 really, “Just like on this blog as mentioned by posters a lot of black people nowadays may not have their first instance of blatant racism until their 20′s or 30′s whereas back in the day it was 24/7 from birth up having to deal w/racist bull shit.”
I’m in my 30’s know just had a kid a few months ago but since we are thinking of moving back to the States I worry that he needs a shield in his hand. So if he can not have to put up with that crap I will be an extremely happy father. I can remember clearly when I was little the hot white heat of racism. I can also remember its frigid state and none to fun either.
When I was younger and this was in the late 70’s and 80’s I often heard older black folks talk about how blacks couldn’t work together because they were always bringing you down. I wish I could put it in the way they said it, I thought this was a horrible idea and should never be said in earshot of any young black person. Yet, back when I was working in the music business I had a few friends I helped out. Most of my friends were white or asian and we pushed them into the music business. Some met with success others well not as much but I only had one black friend who asked me to help him break in. I heard his stuff it was pretty good and better than half the stuff I saw coming in.
The more I tried to help him the more older black people tried to put a stop to it. We would hear, you are taking him away from the church. His mother wouldn’t like, you are ruining his future. Mind you we were all in our twenties at the time. I had never encountered as much blockage but he really wanted to try and so we pushed ahead finally he looked at me and said they are never going to leave me be. It happen to all those kids in the Church he said. Didn’t matter if it was boy or girl we can’t seem to make our own decisions. I would have kept trying until my mother was threaten and then we both stopped. I looked at him and he apologized but I also apologized if anything I would have gone the extra mile because as much as I love my friends a successful black friend is like two gold nuggets. A few years back this friend commited sucide I don’t know if being in the music business would have helped him. I think it is a pretty slimy business and as about as healthy for you as being a modelling industry.
Right now I am helping out an African friend with his business and it has been again an eye opening time, but we are making progress. I still believe with all my heart that if you want to see more successful black businesses you’ve got to get on at the ground floor. You got to pull a sprint and hit the friends and family when you find something that is great, just like a blog growth in popularity is usually founded by word of mouth (or you find it on someone elses blog roll). Anyway I will get of my soap box.
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@Dave. I agree it comes from all sides, and I didn’t mean to appear hypocritical. I hate no one though I will admit when I started reading comments on those websites hate was consuming me I didn’t want to go down that path….. Two wrongs don’t make right, I don’t agree with those comments towards white people that are typed. I do not turn a blind eye I know that there are racist idiots in every race, Now with that being said, I see the majority of comments being aimed on blacks even when we have nothing to do with the video we get bombarded with insults. I remember I wanted to be asian because it seems they avoid lots of conflict, although I could be wrong. I don’t know what you saw but every time I see a video with a black idiot doing something idiotic every black person is a “SheBoon”, “Nįgger”, “ape”, ect but ironically the white person that does something gets judged as an individual now this is what i observed you may see different. But I’m just saying I’m tired of trying to appease people because some ignorant people in my race choose to reflect themselves. Also mock Ebonics is getting annoying shit that I never even hear the most ill-manured, unedeucated black person would say. IE:(” gibs me dat” “muddaland” “crackaz beez racis” ect.)
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I hear you on that. @kideither… I have seen that as well. A tough guy behind a screen and a bunch of mindless followers. I give you an example from the white point of view on youtube. “White people have tails” “White People are half neanderthal” “White people are really basically mutated albinos” “White people have no soul and are inherently evil creatures” “Ah ha your women like us more” “I’m glad that stupid craker kkk was killed” “You wouldn’t say that in my neighborhood, theyd kill the shit out you” “Our melanin makes us far superior humans” “The white race was created by black scientists” (Nation of Islam peops) Goes on and on. Then people say stupid things back and forth and back and forth and it never ends. So then when you look at some of the back or forth comments from either side you could make a case that race relations are worse and not better. But if you look at the moron aspect of it and the fact that none of these people black or white have to look or meet each other face to face it’s nonsense that shouldn’t be taken too seriously on either side. Believe me I used to get mad too. I look at it differently now.
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@Kiwi
I figured he was thanks for confirming that lol.you are right about “Whites take all the resources for themselves and throw a bone at Asians, blacks, and Hispanics, then watch and laugh as they tear each other up.”I don’t see how he goes from implying that blacks cause white businesses to leave,to talking about how blacks don’t like asian businesses in their neighborhood.
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@kidether “I remember I wanted to be asian because it seems they avoid lots of conflict, although I could be wrong”
I saw a news story just today where the kappa sigma fraternity at duke university caused the asians students to protest because the frats threw a party and dressed as asians and sent invites with misspelled words to mock their accent.The commenters were leaving comments saying how they should not have been so sensitive.sounds just like how some of those college students dressed as sterotypes of blacks and went to a party.
Poc go through some of the same things just sometimes of different levels.
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‘It’s like Churchs wants to prove me right.” kiwi
One of your comments on another post claimed whites were responsible for bad schools because they move out when others move in. Yet you exempted Asians who left bad school districts for better ones. Setting the hypocrisy aside, what were Asians doing in the bad schools to start with? Simple. It’s the best they could afford at the time. As soon as they could afford better they left, too.
Similarly, Asians have businesses in black areas because its the best they can do at the time. So why are businesses in black areas so inexpensive? Because business owners have to put up with misbehavior. As soon as Asians are successful enough they leave, too. Is that “yellow flight”?
Don’t get me wrong. I don’t fault anyone for wanting to live in a better neighborhood or attend better schools. Why do you?
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Click to access DornerManifesto_.pdf
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My hero, like the other Rosa, Rosa Luxemburg. Fortunately, she lived longer than Rosa Luxemburg and could witness some progress in her lifetime.
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@ son2380
I saw the story on msn and yahoo its crazy.Thanks for posting the full letter.I don’t condone what he is doing but at least we know why.I’m not surprised that its Lapd i would have thought it was Oakland though.I believe his story that he witnessed that disabled man being beaten by that other officer.Its stuff like this that makes witnesses and victims not want to come forward especially if they will be punished for it and not the perpetrator.i don’t see this ending well.It reminds me of that howard morgan shooting.the lapd has already shot 2 ppl thinkin it was the suspect.smh i guess all black men look alike to them.
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@Legion
even if it was planned months in advance the person who went out to sit in front of the bus, whoever this person would have been had to have a lot of bottle, and it happened to be Rosa Parks, so yes, hero worship!! But I agree that making her into a saint was silly (daring sacrifice is what saints do, so where would the merit be??) because it lessens her achievement: she was a normal woman with a sexlife, and that’s why she is a real hero!
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@Annef 1
I like Rosa Parks and may she rest in peace.
I am so sick of the racism in this country whether it be from Whites and other minorities. We all need to unite and get ride of racism in this society. I think we can be I could be wrong because I may sound naive because I am almost eighteen.
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@ kiwi
“Asians don’t leave any neighborhoods. They start off by settling into good ones when they immigrate.”
That may be your experience but it’s not for everyone. Asians who can afford it settle in good neighborhoods. Those who can’t settle in bad neighborhoods and leave as soon as they can. Either way, it doesn’t change the point that Asians don’t want bad neighborhoods and schools, either. Otherwise they’d all be moving to bad neighborhoods and schools.
“When blacks move into perfectly fine neighborhoods, whites excuse leaving and taking all the money with them because the schools “became bad”. Oddly, it takes years of underfunding for that to happen.”
Not true. Majority black school districts receive more funding than majority white school districts.
“Blacks don’t have much inherited wealth due to slavery, so it’s not their fault.”
That’s a canard. Even blacks with higher incomes have less savings.
‘I don’t know why you assume whites leave because the neighborhoods are bad. They leave perfectly fine neighborhoods that have lots of Asians. Cupertino is an example. In that case, whites are leaving even though Asians have raised the quality of the schools. Whites should be rushing in yet in fact they are taking off like cowards.”
I assume whites leave when neighborhoods start turning bad because thats what usually happens. Cupertino is an exception. But you’re mistaken about it being white flight. It’s simple economics. People with children are willing to pay more for a house in a good school district than people without children. A lot of the people moving out have children who have already left home.
According to Mayor Wong of Cupertino:
Moreover, its likely that many of the Asians moving to Cupertino did so because it had a larger Asian population in addition to good schools. Not that I object to people wanting to live around others who share their language and culture. Why do you?
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Churchs,
Are you racist? I’m sorry, I meant to say “race-realist”?
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Yeah. I hate white people. How about you?
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@ Churchs
Absoultely not but if you ask me what some are the disparities are I would list some I notice.
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Sadness and Anger After a Legend Is Mugged
By JAMES BENNET
Published: September 01, 1994
Her face bruised and her lip swollen, Rosa Parks, the mother of the civil rights movement, seemed more sad than angry today as she quietly described being robbed and beaten in her bedroom here on Tuesday night.
“I regret very much that some of our people are in such a mental state that they would hurt and rob an older person,” Mrs. Parks said as she sat in living room of her modest, rented home, five blocks from the boulevard named in her honor. “In these times, none of us seem to be safe from this type of treatment and violation by a sick-minded person.”
Mrs. Parks, who is 81, said her assailant appeared not to recognize her, although she is known throughout the neighborhood. Indeed, her suspected attacker, who made off with less than $100, was known there, too. Based on her description of the suspect, neighbors found and held the man for the police this afternoon.
Deputy Chief Benny Napoleon said the name of the suspect, who is 28, would not be released until he was charged, probably on Thursday morning. The suspect is likely to be charged with breaking and entering, and assault and battery.
Mrs. Parks urged people not to read too much into the attack. But inevitably, she reflected on how things had changed since 1955, when she sat down on a Montgomery, Ala., bus and in her soft but firm voice said she would not yield her seat to a white man, setting off a 381-day bus boycott and a revolution against Jim Crow law. ‘Still Have a Long Way to Go’
“Many gains have been made,” she said, her hands folded in her lap and her hair crossed in two silver braids over her head. “But as you can see, at this time we still have a long way to go and so many of our children are going astray.”
Mrs. Parks’s neighbors, who said they viewed her not as a celebrity but as a communal grandmother — a source of warm greetings and birthday cards — took a less compassionate tone. To many, the attack was particularly galling because it was apparently committed by a black man.
“For her to have been a legend, to have paved the way for our race, and yet, the same young man who beat her, she struggled to better his own life,” said James Foster, a 70-year-old neighbor. “It’s outrageous.”
Mrs. Parks said the attack left her fearful for the first time on the tidy, West Side block where she has lived for six years.
Mrs. Parks’s lawyer, Gregory J. Reed, said she would spend the night in a temporary room in a gated, guarded apartment complex downtown, then move into an apartment there when one becomes available.
Mrs. Parks moved to Detroit in 1957, after her role in the Montgomery bus boycott made it impossible for her to find work there, Mr. Reed said.
Mrs. Parks continued working as a seamstress, then joined the staff of Representative John Conyers Jr., Democrat of Michigan, in 1965, retiring in 1988, said her executive assistant, Elaine Steele. Her husband, Raymond, died in 1979. In the 80’s, Mrs. Parks founded the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development to help the city’s children. Mayor Is Outraged
In a statement from Martha’s Vineyard, where he is vacationing, Mayor Dennis W. Archer said: “I personally and deeply resent any of our citizens’ being assaulted and becoming victims of crime. It is more insulting when Rosa Parks, who sat down to give us an equal opportunity to compete, becomes a victim of crime in her own home.”
Several of Mrs. Parks’s neighbors worried that news of the attack would further damage Detroit’s tattered reputation, just as the first signs of a turnaround are appearing. “We’re starting to change, and this is just going to drag us down,” Derek Shirley, 26 said. “For something to happen to a lady that did so much for the black cause — that ain’t right.”
Some of Mrs. Parks’s neighbors caught the suspect at a nearby grocery and liquor story. “Apparently they know this guy from the neighborhood,” Deputy Chief Napoleon said. He said he did not know if the man, who is suspected in two other burglaries, was roughed up.
Mrs. Parks said that as she prepared for bed on Tuesday evening, she heard a loud noise downstairs, and then a man calling out. When she came down, the man told her that someone had broken in her back door, but he had chased him away. Mrs. Parks has a security system, but it was disconnected after malfunctioning last year, Ms. Steele said. What the Intruder Said
“He wanted to protect me, is what he said, and he wanted me to give him some money,” Mrs. Parks said. He asked for three or four dollars, then followed Mrs. Parks upstairs as she went to get it. Once in her bedroom, however, the man, whom Mrs. Parks said reeked of alcohol, demanded all her money. She resisted.
“That’s when he started pushing me around and hitting me,” she said. As she fell on her bed, trying to pull her money out of her pocket, the man continued to strike her in the face.
“I had never been hit in that manner in my life,” she said. “I was screaming and trying to ask him not to hit me.” Once she gave him her money, Mrs. Parks said, the man left.
Mrs. Parks then phoned Ms. Steele, who lives across the street, and Ms. Steele called the police. The police took between 45 and 50 minutes to reach her home, a fact that infuriated some of her friends. In Need of Medical Help
Deputy Chief Rudy Thomas said the attack “didn’t receive priority one, when life endangerment is imminent.” Instead, Mrs. Parks’ more urgently needed medical attention, he said. He said the city’s Emergency Medical Service responded within about 11 minutes of the 911 operator’s call.
Mrs. Parks was taken to Detroit Receiving Hospital, where she was treated for her bruises and released.
Mrs. Parks said she had intended to move several months ago to the apartment complex, called Riverfront Apartments, because she was tired of going up and down stairs. But Mr. Reed said the complex had recently told her that they had no room. Today, the complex speedily arranged for the temporary room.
Many of her neighbors saw her moving as an ominous sign. “We’re going to lose her, right?” said Moses Miles, 64. “Anytime we can’t protect our great leaders, we’re in trouble.”
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@ Kiwi
I’ll support two of my previous points that you contradicted but didn’t refute. Then I’ll address some of your comments.
Majority black school districts receive more funding than majority white school districts.
Most funding comes from state and federal taxes not local property taxes. States and federal gov’s divide the money among all the districts. There are programs in place to give underperforming schools more money. The Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center published a report on school funding. Across the US, non white school districts receive on average 5% more funding. In fact, according to the data shown in Table 2 of pages 6 and 7, white students receive the least funding and Asians receive the most.
Average District Spending Per Pupil, Weighted by Subgroup Population.
Even blacks with higher incomes have less savings.
The Role of Human Capital in Earning Differences Between White and Black Men.
(See ‘The Affect of Achievement on Earnings in the 1980s’, page 15)
The Role of Pre Market Factors in Black White Wage Differences.
Racial and Ethnic Differences in Wealth and Asset Choices
“”
Which begs the question: Why aren’t the grownup children who moved out staying in Cupertino? If it’s about economics, they would do well to invest in their own children’s futures by staying where the schools are top notch. They are sacrificing the long-term to make a quick buck in the short-term. — kiwi
You answered your own question. They can make more money somewhere else. But it may not be that simple. Just because their parents could afford to live there doesn’t mean they can. The influx of Asians increased housing prices. Its not much different than gentrification. When whites move in to urban areas the prices go up and blacks complain they’re priced out of the market. But when whites move out people complain of white flight. Some people are going to complain no matter what.
In the case of whites, it’s not about schools, it’s about not wanting to live around blacks or Asians, regardless of schools. If it were about schools, whites would stay put. Whites have enough wealth to fund them, so what’s the problem? — kiwi
Your parents could have moved to Oakland. Why didn’t they? They had enough money to fund the schools, so what’s the problem?
It’s a self-fulfilled prophecy when the schools get bad because whites left. What if they stayed? You never know until you try. — kiwi
My parents stayed and the schools went to tish. But scores didn’t go down because of the teachers or the buildings or the funding. They went down because of the students. My test scores raised the school average but what good did that do either me or the other students? Did they suddenly become smarter because I was sitting in the class? Students do best when the work is appropriate for their ability. No one benefits when the work is too hard for some and too easy for others.
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There is a show on Cartoon Netwrork Adult Swim called The Mighty Boosh, In the fifth episode they have a white man in Black face. I couldn’t beliieve it when I saw it, WTF was Adult Swim thinking. How in the fkin hell would adult swim put this show on the air with a bunch of white men in Black face WTF? I guess they figured because the episode was on at 3 am no one would see it, or that black people in the US has become so desensitive to the Racism on tv that no on would care. But I really don’t know what to think about this. I am speechless, WTF is wrong with Cartoon network and Adult swim. The episode I saw is attached just fast forward to about 14 mins, WTF was Cartoon network thinking
Full episode – The Mighty Boosh – Jungle Series Episode 5
http://www.youtube.com
no copyright intended
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Ms. Parks also promoted women’s rights. She also investigated allegations of black females who were assaulted by white males. http://www.essaysinhistory.com/review/2012/130.
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@ kiwi
I didn’t “cherry-pick” or “ignore” anything. The per pupil spending data is what it is. It doesn’t support your preferred conclusion so now you want to splain why non white students receiving more funding isn’t fair to non whites. Wha.. ?!!!
There may be some higher cost structures built into urban/suburban schools but that’s more than offset by economies of scale. Simply put, per pupil costs decrease as the number of students increase. Urban/suburban districts have significant cost advantages due to higher population density. That’s one of the reasons state gov’s are pushing rural districts to consolidate. Your argument that whites are disproportionately rural means white students are even more underfunded than per pupil spending data suggests.
You’re acknowledging that wealth and not just income affects life chances for blacks who have little money built up due to historic economic inequalities. So far, so good.
I did not. I linked two studies showing people of similar ability have similar success regardless of race and another study showing blacks save less money regardless of income. The greatest factor in success is ability.
If Asians can do it, so can whites. — kiwi
I doubt every asian lives in Cupertino. There are plenty of asians who can’t afford to live there, either. But I wasn’t complaining or blaming anyone. I was merely stating a fact.
Unlike whites, Asians don’t take off every time different looking people move in. — kiwi
I don’t think that’s true. I’ve known a number of Asians who lived in white neighborhoods. When blacks moved in they left right along with everyone else. Of course, there are asians who move to black neighborhoods because its all they can afford. As soon as they can afford they leave, too.
Unlike whites, Asians don’t cause schools to decline by taking off with their money. — kiwi
I don’t think that’s true, either. Asian immigrants have to be coming from somewhere. Perhaps your parents or grandparents immigrated. They saw a better opportunity somewhere else and took it. It’s the same.
If whites hadn’t left Oakland, the schools would not have declined. Why is it the job of Asians to fix what whites broke? Oh, that’s right, push the blame on people who were never there. — kiwi
Whites didn’t “break” anything. The people who moved in didn’t maintain the same performance as those who left. Whose fault is that? And why do you assume schools improve when asians move in but decline when blacks do? You’re starting to sound racist. LOL!
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@ kiwi
I’m not going to keep answering the same slop I’ve already disproven in previous comments. People can either scroll up or click the links.
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Churchs,
Thanks for answering my question in the most asinine way possible as only people you could and would. Happy whitewashing.
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@brothawolf and @churchs @ Legion
Sorry, you may disagree with Churchs, but asinine she is not! While we all feel the pain and are dead frustrated about white flight, there are also uncomfortable truths that we need to face without fearing that we are being disloyal by accepting criticism. I think that if we did, we would get to the root of some problems and help solve them. So instead of putting Churchs down, why don’t you go and check the figures she ‘s using???? Then you can put her down for doing crap research or looking into biased sites.
While I seemed to disagree with Legion and will not stop admiring Rosa Parks or Martin Luther king, or Bessie Coleman etc, I think it was him who made the point, that we now need new pioneers who will break the racist fortress. Some white social history books want to sell us the idea that Rosa P and Martin LK ended racism. They did not, but they were non-violent, got the blacks of the world to unite and feel proud (Mandela did the same) and achieved something, I do think we need to find a way to repeat this. When I look at how you argue against each other, squabble over petty stuff, I think Whitey has succeeded: divide and conquer. We must unite!!
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[…] "Rosa Parks (1913-2005), an American department-store seamstress, set off the civil rights movement that overthrew Jim Crow (American apartheid) when she refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in 1955. By the 1990s she was a sainted figure of American history, the kind that schoolchildren have to do reports on." […]
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Hey Church,
I want to just put in about stats, they only tell you one thing. Like why is there a disparity in the savings of blacks and whites with the same income. Let me take a stab at trying to answer it. I could be wrong I could be making mistakes but here we go. Insurance companies making blacks pay 3% more than whites.
Link here http://business.time.com/2012/05/18/when-consumers-pay-more-due-to-race-or-gender/
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/5/prweb8503917.htm
Let’s see about buying homes and financial investment.
Finance is an industry that doesn’t have too many black professionals there and most people feel better investing with people of the same skin tone.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesleadershipforum/2012/12/10/how-home-ownership-keeps-blacks-poorer-than-whites/
Systematic redlining:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institutional_discrimination_in_the_United_States_housing_market
http://www.questia.com/library/1P2-32889170/suburban-blacks-paying-more-in-property-tax-study
Ok this one you might not take I am fine with that.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-david-j-leonard/white-denial-black-middle-class_b_1789346.html
Ok that is all I am going to put for now but lets say you are a middle class black person. Now besides auto, home, and other disparities that are going to eat at your disposible income. So while you are middle class and comparible in that bracket it the stats might not be taking in other factors. Now please remember that being black and woman makes a lot of these rates higher as they have to deal with both being black and woman and the disparities there you can just type and found on google. That is why I love my Mom so much she did hold down the fort after my Dad died. Yet she recieved horrible financial advise from the banks.
Compared to whites it isn’t really an equal playing ground. Especially when supposedly their neighborhoods property value doesn’t go down. Yes, going to the suburbs does put on expense but truely it isn’t the same. Financial knowledge is cumlative and while we are growing in that knowledge it will take some time before we are on stronger ground. We also know that even if white’s save and put on the 401K it only take one golden parachute cockroach to kill all of that.
You may say I’m wrong but I welcome the knowledge if you point out my errors on it.
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Now that is what I call research and fact. wery illuminating, thank you!
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@ king of trouble
I appreciate your response and think you’ve made a valuable contribution to this discussion. I didn’t confirm your sources so I can’t vouch for their accuracy. But I read most of it and don’t doubt it. I don’t, however, think the costs you cited account for the different rate of savings. For most people, the more they earn the more they spend. If they save a few dollars on one bill they’ll just spend it somewhere else. For example, my brother-in-law makes about 120K. But my sister pays all the bills with her salary because he blows every penny he makes. She even had to set up a separate account to keep that fool from blowing her paycheck, too.
But enough of that unpleasantness. Let’s talk about your links. There were too many links for me to address individually. I will, however, point out a couple of things.
First, there is a price to pay for irresponsible behavior. And when it comes to insurance, housing, etc some of that cost is born by the individual and some is born by others in their demographic. That’s true of everyone regardless of sex, age, race, etc. If I start getting speeding tickets, DUIs and auto accidents my rates are going to go up. But rates for others in my demographic are going to go up a little bit, too. I don’t know if it’s fair that someone else whose never had a speeding ticket, accident or DUI should have to pay a tiny bit more for my irresponsible behavior or not. But would it be more fair if that burden were shifted to another demographic who had lower rates of irresponsible behavior? Should I blame people from more responsible demographics for my own irresponsible behavior? Should others of my demographic blame the more reponsible demographic for their higher rates? No, I don’t think so. They should blame ME!
And, second, individuals don’t always rely on statistics the way insurance companies do. They rely on reputation. Everyone relies on reputation in making decisions. You might buy a car or stereo because it has a really good reputation for reliability or sound quality. Often, the reputation is deserved. Just as often, the reputation can command a premium in excess of what the numbers would suggest is reasonable. The fact is, blacks have a poor reputation for those things which drive property values down. And other blacks are paying a reverse premium for it. Passing laws against discrimination based on irresponsible behavior are not going to solve the issue — nor should it! The only thing that will solve the issue is correcting the irresponsible behavior which creates discrimination in the first place. Now, I can just hear people screaming “Your blaming the victim!” Yeah, well, the only thing most people are a victim of is their own irresponsible behavior. And that includes me as well.
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@KIng of trouble. I really appreciate how you try to give a balanced view of things instead of blaming the others for everything. honesty and soul searching will bring us closer to a solution than blaming everything on others. Hope your sister does not lose it all to her husband and that he grows up a bit.
@Legion
Sorry I read your comment too fast (the one about hero worship), but I think you too read mine a wee bit fast 🙂 I agree with you really!!
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@annef1
I think you meant to address me. Since you ask, its an interesting story. I wrote the anecdote about my brother in law as if it was still going on. It’s not. He started having an affair. My sister gave him a chance to break it off and he refused. So she divorced him. Even while the divorce was in progress she gave him a chance to reconcile and he refused. The week they were to get their tax refund (which was going to be about 10K) he came to the house and demanded it. He took the distributor cap off her car so she couldn’t leave and kicked the door down. She locked herself in a room that had a reinforced door and he tried to kick it down, too. Fortunately she had called 911 and sat the phone down before hiding. So 911 recorded him screaming threats and beating on the door. She also had his computer that was full of pics and video. Porn may be legal but 16 isn’t. Needless to say, he gave her everything she wanted in the divorce. Some people might call that “blackmail” but I call it “paying the stupid tax”. LOL!
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Churchs, what are we going to do with you?
King of Trouble makes the following points:
1) There are few Black people in the field of finance for other Blacks to go to
2) Also most investors would rather invest in people who look like them
3) Years of “redlining” minorities from purchasing properties in certain areas
4) Blacks pay higher property taxes than Whites for comparable properties
Your reply:
So the reason for things like same race investment preference, housing preference, and higher taxes is due to irresponsible behavior by Black people.
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@ Church, I can understand that marriage and money are a difficult thing. At this time if it is still happening she should talk to some financial consultants and the bank to make sure she seperates all her assets from him. She also needs to check what share liabilities she has and pay them so he doesn’t slime his way back into her life. Then yes, she needs to make sure she legally gets the seperation and cleave dead rotting meat away from her.
I like to say that if you were middle class you tend to have a middle class mindset but most people do spend more when their income comes up. That goes across almost every ethnic group which is what financial planners will tell you. I spent a short year teaching some Japanese, Chinese, and Korean financial advisors English for finance. I also studied Finance in college I don’t feel great about trusting my money to anyone. Since my major was International Business and not Finance I am far from being an expert in that field. Blacks and finance is a bitter history.
Actually, before the big stock market crash of the 1920’s you would have found more black people buying into stocks. The crash ended that and the New Deal which just barely laid a wet paper towel on them didn’t help recover and rebuild that kind of finance. Which then you had a lot of bedroom banks or matress banks. I will say this not because I am teacher but because it is true education like money is an interest bearing saving account compounds. Someone needs to have the fiscal know-how in order to pass it on. This is why I am very angry with the American School system that barely teaches finance and in the 1990s shoved hundreds of credit cards to freshman college students. These credit card companies knew they would default and the parents would try to pay.
In speculation, do you know where a good place to invest in right now? I mean you have the whole world to put your investment where would you put you money? Now, this is a hypotheical question one of the first my Asian financial advisors asked me. I didn’t know myself, I would have bet Australia but I tell you the reason why I thought that later if you want to hear it.
My mother was the one to show my aunts how to open up an interest bearing saving account and a checking account. She also was the one to tell them the difference between a few different bonds. My mother knew only a little about banking and her information wasn’t bad but it could have been ten times better if she had a trustworthy financial advisor. What she had was a lazy bank telling a woman in her early 30’s to invest in bonds. That is crazy talk and yes in the end it did end up stinging a little not as bad as not investing but there are things about bonds that aren’t good for younger people and better for older people.
I also have to say that there are tons of places that poor whites have cars on their front lawns, act up horrible, and aren’t really the sort of people that generally a middle class person would want to have in their neighborhood. However, the whole white race isn’t defined by those irresponsible white people who aren’t always irresponsible just poor, just like there are many poor black people who aren’t irresponsible.
@ annef1, I am a teacher the moment I can’t try to be understanding is the moment I should pack up my desk and walk out of the school. Not everyone needs that kind patiences but if I were teaching your kid you would hope that I could be person who can look both ways. I love all my kids even the ones teachers say they are hard to like. I see myself in those kids and I want them to grow up stronger than redwoods.
I am not saying Church is a kid I am just saying I am taking the same approach with everybody I meet that I have in my class.
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To Kiwi:
They leave perfectly fine neighborhoods that have lots of Asians. Cupertino is an example. In that case, whites are leaving even though Asians have raised the quality of the schools. Whites should be rushing in yet in fact they are taking off like cowards.
Note that Whites in California are an aging population and both nominally and as a percentage of the population there are fewer Whites under the age of 18 in Cal than a decade ago.. what happened is that Cupertino properties tripled in place from the early 90s to the mid-2000s. The change in tax law in the late 90s enabled couples with substantial financial gains on their houses to cash in… ($250K per individual and $500K per couple..) It wasn’t that Whites were running away.. it was that there weren’t enough White families to buy the properties that empty nest Whites were selling. A similar pattern of buying happened in Millbrae about 30 miles to the North. I live in the area and the thought of Whites leaving either city in droves because of a fear of Asians is pretty humorous. I have been working in Silicon Valley since the early 90s.. there are simply much fewer White people (as a percentage of workforce..) working in the IT industry with the possible exception of companies located in the hipster magnet, San Francisco.
And yeah I know about that 2005 Wall Street Journal article… it received quite a few letters to the editor saying the author distorted or misquoted the people she interviewed.
http://mytown.mercurynews.com/archives/cupertinocourier/20051207/cu-coverstrip.shtml
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I should add to this comment: “The change in tax law in the late 90s enabled couples with substantial financial gains on their houses to cash in… ($250K per individual and $500K per couple..) ”
Since 1997 capital gains on the sale of an owner occupied dwelling held for two or more years are now tax free for up $250K per individual and $500K per couple.
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@ king of trouble
I strongly agree with that whole comment. The only thing I’d say is that between the library and the internet a reasonable person ought to be able to figure out the basics. I know its confusing at first but all the legitimate publications make the same recommendations. So if someone reads enough they’ll sort it out.
I ran into a similar situation as your aunt with a financial adviser a few years ago. The guy tried to persuade me to transfer money from some Vanguard Index Funds to some equivalent index funds with higher fees by another company. I’m sure most people fall for it which is a shame. He was probably getting a commission from that company. You really have to watch those fees. You can’t always get away from fees but even a modest fee compounded over 40 years is a truckload of cash.
I’ll tell you one that insurance companies like to pull — whole life. It’s a horrible investment. If you want to invest then invest. If you need life insurance then buy term.
In speculation, do you know where a good place to invest in right now?
Actually, I don’t. There are a couple of stocks I’ve had for a while that are doing pretty good. I bought them for good reasons but I’ve been neglecting them which is a no-no. That’s why I currently have most of my money in index funds. I always park my money in index funds when I don’t know what else to do with it. I’m missing out on a rally but things can change quickly and I don’t have time to perform due diligence at the moment.
The only thing I know about AUS is that they had a mining boom that was feeding materials to China. I think that’s cooled off though.
Then yes, she needs to make sure she legally gets the seperation and cleave dead rotting meat away from her.
Yeah. She got rid of him.
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To King:
3) Years of “redlining” minorities from purchasing properties in certain areas
The irony is that Black Wealth as a percentage of White wealth has declined dramatically as redlining basically became outlawed. (Not that it didn’t have an effect…) Black Wealth as a percentage of White Wealth was over 18% in 1967, rose to a little higher than 26% in 1984 declined slightly to 25% in 1988 and in recent years has collapsed to 4%.
Click to access oliver-shapiro-black-white-wealth.pdf
http://money.cnn.com/2012/06/21/news/economy/wealth-gap-race/index.htm
I blame globalization for much of the wealth collapse from the 80s. Basically firms outsourcing and insourcing (immigrant labor both legal and illegal) have marginalized the Black population the most. (Hidden in that data is that there are also a substantial number of marginalized Whites.. but since the large majority of the wealthiest people in the US are White the figures are skewed…)
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Yes, but as you may be alluding to, the economic gap between the rich and poor has been widening dramatically at the same time. I believe this is simply a result of there being more poor Black people and more Rich White people. I think it is more of an economic social trend that simply mirrors the wealth gap within the whole of U.S. society.
Nevertheless, the historic causes of economic problems within the Black community still hearken back to some of the practices Kin of Trouble pointed out.
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To King:
Yes, but as you may be alluding to, the economic gap between the rich and poor has been widening dramatically at the same time. I believe this is simply a result of there being more poor Black people and more Rich White people. I think it is more of an economic social trend that simply mirrors the wealth gap within the whole of U.S. society.
Nevertheless, the historic causes of economic problems within the Black community still hearken back to some of the practices Kin of Trouble pointed out.
King, we’re on the same page.
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No disrespect to Mrs. Parks. But there were others who were arrested for not giving up their seats. Claudette Colvin I feel in the words of the author of the blog post on the Root.com. “The Other Rosa Parks” The civil rights movement threw her under the bus. I felt like the author of that blog post. Rosa Park was the profile they were looking for, she looked middle class. I always felt colorism had something to do with it. The long hair, the light skin. These were symbols of acceptable negroes during that time. The first time Abagond did this post I wanted to say to say this. The blog post on the Root.com, confirmed what I always believed, when I first learned about Claudette Colvin.
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I love you Rosa, your my idol!!!!!
Vrai
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[…] Download Plan More @ abagond.wordpress.com […]
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