Challenging the Myths of Rosa Parks and the Civil Rights Movement in the Age of Black Lives Matter

Socialism 2017

August 15, 2017

The contribution of women to the struggle for Civil Rights and Black Power is often downplayed, with most of the emphasis put on great men. When mentioned, the contribution of women like Rosa Parks is reduced to a single act—she refused to move because she was “tired.” But women like Rosa Parks, Fannie Lou Hamer and Diane Nash were fierce activists and organizers who dedicated their lives to the struggle. Jeanne Theoharis, author of The Rebellious Life of Ms. Rosa Parks, brings the stories of such women to life and places them where they belong—at the forefront of our understanding of the fight against racial injustice—in order to draw out the lessons for today's movement.

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