1981
Citation:
Rosa Parks, a Detroit staff aide to U.S. Representative John Conyers, has been not only a role for millions of blacks but a symbol for every human being who has ever fought against tyranny or injustice. In 1955, when Mrs. Parks refused to give up her seat on Montgomery, Alabama bus to a white passenger, thereby violating bus company policy and city law, she created an upheaval which resulted in a year’s boycott of the bus system by Blacks. Her act launched an era of protest and reform which resulted in the abolition of all legally sanctioned racial discrimination in the United States and served as evidence that one person can make a difference in the world. Mrs. Parks has been active in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Women’s Public Affairs Committee. Her name will continue to live on in history books and to serve as a model for personal integrity.
Award was presented at The President's Cabinet Fourteenth Annual Awards Dinner, May 1. 1981.