Montgomery Boycott Notes

The Montgomery City Bus Lines, a northern-owned corporation, had extremely degrading rules for black passengers.
70% of passengers were black, yet they were treated poorly.
The first seats were reserved for whites, even if unoccupied.
Black passengers had to stand in the back, even if front seats were empty, in case whites boarded.
Blacks seated in the rear had to give up their seats for white passengers.
Black passengers had to pay at the front, exit, and re-board at the rear.
Buses sometimes drove off after black passengers paid, especially the elderly or pregnant, which drivers found humorous.
White drivers frequently used racial slurs against black passengers.

In March 1955, 15-year-old Claudette Colvin refused to give up her seat to a white passenger.
She was arrested.
Martin Luther King Jr. served on a committee to protest, but no action was taken.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, a 42-year-old seamstress, refused to give up her seat to a white man.
She was not planning a protest but was simply tired.
The bus driver had her arrested.
E.D. Nixon signed her bail bond.

E.D. Nixon called Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph Abernathy to organize the boycott.
Martin offered Dexter Avenue Church as a meeting place.
A meeting of black ministers and civic leaders was arranged.
Over 40 people attended, representing various segments of Negro life.
Ministers began to accept Martin's view that religion should address both spiritual and social conditions.
$Religion \ deals \ with \ both \ heaven \ and \ earth$ .
$Any \ religion \ that \ professes \ to \ be \ concerned \ with \ the \ souls \ of \ men \ and \ is \ not \ concerned \ with \ the \ slums \ that \ doom \ them, \ the \ economic \ conditions \ that \ strangle \ them, \ and \ the \ social \ conditions \ that \ cripple \ them, \ is \ a \ dry-as-dust \ religion.$
The Christian ministry provided leadership, with Christian ideals as its source.

Despite differing opinions, all attendees unanimously supported the boycott.
The boycott was set for Monday, December 5.
Committees were organized to spread awareness.
Leaflets were printed, urging Negroes not to ride buses on December 5.
A mass meeting was scheduled at Holt Street Baptist Church for further instructions.
Taxi companies and car owners were organized to provide alternative transportation.

The white press inadvertently helped spread the word through an outraged expose.
A white woman found a leaflet and informed the newspapers.
Almost every Negro minister urged people to honor the boycott on Sunday.

Martin questioned the morality of the boycott method, fearing it could be unchristian and used for unethical purposes.
He concluded it was justified as a means to achieve freedom and justice and to urge compliance with the law.
He quoted Thoreau: $We \ can \ no \ longer \ lend \ our \ cooperation \ to \ an \ evil \ system.$
He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it.
He conceived of the movement as an act of massive noncooperation.

Sidewalks were crowded with people walking to work.
Students thumbed rides or walked.
People used taxis, mules, and horse-drawn buggies for transportation.
Some walked up to twelve miles round trip.
Martin recognized the courage and sacrifice of individuals seeking freedom and dignity.

Rosa Parks was convicted of disobeying segregation laws and fined $10$ dollars plus costs.
Her attorney filed an appeal.
A meeting was called to organize the mass meeting for that night.

Martin told the story of Rosa Parks and the suffering of black people.
He stated that people were tired of mistreatment and segregation.
He declared the necessity to protest.
He compared their protest to the White Citizens Council and the Klan, emphasizing their commitment to justice and non-violence.
There will be no cross- burnings, no white person will be taken from his home by a hooded Negro mob and brutally murdered.
He emphasized persuasion over coercion, guided by Christian faith.
He urged people to love their enemies, bless those who curse them, and pray for those who mistreat them, quoting Jesus.
He cautioned against bitterness and hatred, quoting Booker T. Washington: Let no man pull you so low as to make you hate him.
He expressed hope that future historians would recognize the black people's contribution to civilization.
His speech set the tone for the Movement.