9. Rosa Parks Received the Presidential Medal of Freedom
In 1996, Rosa Parks was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor given by the U.S. executive branch, in recognition of her pivotal role in advancing civil rights and equality. President Bill Clinton presented the medal to Parks in a private Oval Office ceremony on September 15, 1996. This honor acknowledged her courageous act of defiance in 1955, which became a catalyst for the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the broader civil rights movement (Library of Congress).
