I'm Rosa Parks

Montgomery Bus Boycott

Once upon a time, not so long ago,

A lady named Rosa Parks said "no."

She boarded her bus in a seat for a person of black

Those seats were way in the back

A white man boarded the bus and demanded her seat

But that was a request that Rosa Parks would not meet

She believed that she had something to prove:

She was equal to a white person, so she would not move.

Whites Only

Blacks Only

I'm John Lewis

Freedom Riders

Freedom Riders went on bus trips through the American South

To spread Civil Rights by boycotts and word of mouth

Some black folk went to "Whites Only" places

People that were against Civil Rights were unhappy to see so many colored faces

A man named John Lewis stood for his cause

For the Freedom Riders, he was like Santa Claus

The Freedom Riders were often arrested

But by spreading awareness, their views were attested.

I'm Jackie Robinson

Baseball

Jackie Robinson once played baseball

He changed the world of sports, above all

He was the first African American ballplayer

And went against all Civil Rights naysayers

The Brooklyn Dodgers put him on first base

And soon, Americans accepted him with embrace.

I'm Lyndon B. Johnson

Civil Rights Act of 1964

In 1964, an act was passed

It prohibited African Americans from being harassed

It was promised in 1961,

But it was enacted in 1964, for the long run

It was passed by Lyndon B. Johnson, the president

And ending discrimination against African Americans was its intent

I'm Martin Luther King Jr.

March on Washington

Millions of people gathered at the Memorial of Lincoln

To allow MLK Jr.'s words to sink in

He spoke of people of different races living together in peace

He wanted to cause segregation to cease

He recited his famous "I Have A Dream" speech

There, people listened to him preach

I'm Tommie Smith

I'm John Carlos

1968 Olympics

During the 1968 Olympics in Mexico

Tommie Smith, John Carlos, and Peter Norman put on quite a show

Black power is the point they made

In the air, their fists were unswayed

For this feat, they weren't let on olympic teams any more

But that did not stop them from supporting the cause they stood for