Definition: In the South prior to the desegregation of busing, blacks were required to sit in the back of the bus. In 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the bus. She was arrested. Her arrest spurred the black community into action.
The Montgomery Improvement Association, led by Martin Luther King, organized the Montgomery bus boycott. The boycott lasted for 381 days. It ended when the U.S. District Court ruled in June 1956 and the U.S. Supreme Court later affirmed that segregation on buses was unconstitutional. Implementation of the Court's decision took place on December 20, 1956.
