Staged? So she was in a conspiracy with the bus driver, at least some of the white passengers who got on after her and virtually every black in the South to spark a major meltdown in Jim Crow?

That's much more impressive then the official story. I suppose Bull Connor was in on it too.

NPR had a story on this about ten years ago. She was hand-picked by civil rights activitists to be the poster child. In my mind, that makes her even more of a hero than the original story of a poor helpless woman who just snapped at the spur of the moment. She went in with a plan to fight to win, and it worked.

At least, according to NPR.

I have no idea whether the event was staged, but it really makes no difference. The important thing was what flowed from it - Columbus was certainly not the first to discover the New World, but it was his voyage that launched the voyages of missions, exploration, and commerce that changed the world. Rosa Parks' actions didn't change the world to the same degree as Columbus', but her actions had a huge impact on the most influential culture on the planet - an impact that rippled through most other cultures, too. That matters.

Jackie Robinson was hand-picked to break the color line in baseball. When a battle is difficult and important it's smart to plan it out in advance to ensure the best chance of victory. Nothing wrong with that.

The first bus boycotts were in Baton Rouge LA in 1953. The real pioneer was Martha White, her name has been forgotten by history.

Picked or not, the greatness of Rosa Parks also comes from how she conducted herself after the event. She was never crass or opportunistic. She was dignified, and the civil rights movement succeeded because it was always about dignity.

It is a good thing that her mother did not abort her. That would have been wrong. -- BIll Bennett

Let's not forget that Rosa Parks wouldn't have acheived anything without the rulings of the much maligned (by the right) Warren court of "activist" judges.