My resisting being mistreated on the bus did not begin with that particular arrest…I did a lot of walking in Montgomery.

I did not get on the bus to get arrested. I got on the bus to go home.

I had been pushed as far as I could stand to be pushed. I had decided that I would have to know once and for all what rights I had as a human being and a citizen.

I will no longer act on the outside in a way that contradicts the truth that I hold deeply inside. I will no longer act as if I were less than the whole person I know myself inwardly to be.

I'd see the bus pass every day… But to me, that was a way of life; we had no choice but to accept what was the custom. The bus was among the first ways I realized there was a black world and a white world.

When I see the leadership roles black women are taking today I am very encouraged.

Black women are very capable of leading our organizations. I believe that firmly.