Montgomery Bus Boycott
Rosa Parks refused to surrender her bus seat on December 1, 1955, launching a 381-day economic protest. Black residents walked miles to work rather than ride segregated buses. They organized complex carpools despite police harassment and ticketing. Martin Luther King Jr. emerged as a powerful leader during this sustained campaign. The boycott succeeded when the Supreme Court ordered buses desegregated. This victory demonstrated that organized communities could defeat unjust systems through unified action.
