RateItAll: The Opinion Network

what a true example of a real hero.

Never forget her. Just sitting and not doing anything in that bus show a lot on equality. Long live her great philosophy.

God bless Rosa Parks, who stood up to the sinful ugliness of racism by simply refusing to give her seat up to a white guy on a bus.

Rosa Parks was a great woman who inspired countless others during the Civil Rights movement. If anything, she more than deserved the honor of lying underneath the Capital Rotunda for her selfless act of defiance against the ugly face of racial segregation. In short, Rosa Parks was an icon who led by the example of grace and dignity amidst bigotry.

An understated, underrated great American citizen. . .

I don't mourn much, and Rosa certainly had a good long run, but this was a fine human being. There aren't enough of those around that we can afford to lose one easily.

I admire her for the courage she showed, all those years ago. She seems to have carried herself with dignity, throughout her life, which is unusual for a person in receipt of such fawning notoriety. She wasn't the first to defy the "Jim Crow" laws, and she wasn't the only one who did. But, she became an apt symbol for non-violent dissent against the government-sanctioned persecution of people of her race. Would that more had followed her lead. I won't miss her, now that she has passed, but that doesn't denigrate, in any way, her importance to people who benefitted from her courage and grace.

Sometimes the simplest things inspire people. In one small act Rosa Parks did more for the Civil Rights movement than anybody else. She made it apparent that anyone could make an impact, that this was everyone's struggle, and that only an effort from everyone could change things. She never attempted to glorify her deeds and remained humble to the end. People of any race would do well to follow her example.

Rosa Parks died yesterday at the age of 92. She was a very influential member of the civil rights movement, whose story about refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man, inspired many people to become involved in civil rights. As a child I remember her name and Martin Luther King being taught to me the most. She led a long, successful life, and for an "ordinary" person, she certainly has made a lot of people aware of what she did without any trace of self promotion.