Rosa Parks was born in 1913 in Alabama. In 1955, she refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a segregated bus, sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott. This protest helped launch the civil rights movement. Parks spent her life advocating for racial equality and was honored with numerous awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Though she faced obstacles as a black woman, Parks was determined to stand up against racial injustice through nonviolent protest.