Part Six of the LC Lesson Plan: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

Initially planned as a one day boycott of Montgomery’s buses, in response to the arrest and conviction of Rosa Parks on December 1, the boycott far exceeded the organizer's expectations and continued for the next year.

On 1 December 1955, Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama. This single act of nonviolent resistance sparked the Montgomery bus boycott.

Part Three of the LC Lesson Plan: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

Part Two of the LC Lesson Plan: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

Part Two of the LC Lesson Plan: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

Part Five of the LC Lesson Plan: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

Part Six of the LC Lesson Plan: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

Part Four of the LC Lesson Plan: The Montgomery Bus Boycott

The Sunday before his trial, King sharply criticized the University of Alabama's decision to suspend black student Autherine Lucy from its campus due to fears of mob violence. While acknowledging that demonstrations raise tension, King contends that true peace "is not merely the absence of some negative force" such as war, but "is the presence of some positive force--justice, goodwill, the power of the Kingdom of God." (3/23/10)

Following his $500 fine for violating Alabama's antiboycott law, King gave a short press conference explaining his decision to appeal. King defends the boycott as standing under the "aegis of the constitution" and expresses faith in nonviolent action. (3/16/10)

King's first book gives an account of the 381-day Montgomery Bus Boycott and nonviolence's role in it.