DNC Mourns the Passing of Civil Rights Great Rosa Parks

[MaineDem]

For Immediate Release
October 25, 2005
Contact: Karen Finney 202-863-8148

DNC Mourns the Passing of Civil Rights Great Rosa Parks

Washington, DC - Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean
issued the following statement in honor of the life and legacy of Rosa
Parks:

"Today we mourn the passing of Rosa Parks, the mother of the modern
civil rights movement. On a December day in 1955, Mrs. Parks, in one
simple yet crystallizing act of moral clarity, gave voice and form to
the struggle for civil rights and equality in our country. And, in so
doing, Mrs. Parks pushed us to be a better nation.

"Mrs. Parks will long be remembered for her courage on that bus in
Montgomery, Alabama, which sparked the beginning of the Montgomery bus
boycott led by civil rights leaders such as E.D. Nixon, Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr., and Rev. Ralph Abernathy. This moment sparked an
historic beginning and paved the way for the historic 1964 Civil Rights
Act which banned racial discrimination in public facilities, but her
courage and commitment to civil rights began much earlier and reaches
far deeper.

"As a nation, we are all thankful for her courageous contributions.
Today, in honor of Mrs. Parks' legacy, we must be committed to fighting
the inequities that remain and championing fundamental rights for all
whether it is voting rights, equality for immigrants or a commitment to
end poverty in America. This is the true legacy of Rosa Parks which will
live on long after her passing."

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Paid for and authorized by the Democratic National Committee,
www.democrats.org. This communication is not authorized by any
candidate or candidate's committee.

[shance]

1. "but hercourage and commitment to civil rights began much earlier"

Great point and often forgotten.