Harry Reid: “yesterday, our Nation lost one of our heroes, Rosa Parks--the mother of the modern civil rights movement. The movement…”

“yesterday, our Nation lost one of our heroes, Rosa Parks--the mother of the modern civil rights movement. The movement that she helped launch changed not only our country but the entire world, as her actions gave hope to every individual fighting for civil and human rights. While history proudly remembers December 1, 1955, as Rosa Parks' bravest moment, her fight against oppression and segregation began long before that day. Mrs. Parks was active in the Montgomery NAACP, serving as secretary and as an adviser to the NAACP's Youth Council. She also worked to register African Americans to vote and was active in many other civil rights causes. While it was her act of defiance in 1955 that garnered national attention, she had been thrown off a bus 12 years earlier--by the same driver--for refusing to move. Why was she thrown off the bus? Even then, she refused to give up her seat. Rosa Parks' bravery triggered the Montgomery bus boycott. The boycott gained national attention, ushered in an atmosphere of change, and was the precursor to landmark legislation--most importantly, the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act. Eventually, the issue of segregation and Montgomery's bus policy ended up in the Supreme Court-- another reminder of how important the institution is in protecting the rights of every American. And we should not forget something else. The boycott introduced the Nation to a young minister, a Baptist preacher named Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.…”