Born in Alabama, an American state that was highly segregated in the 1950s, Rosa Parks was an unassuming seamstress who would soon become the "mother" of the civil rights movement.

On the 1st of December 1955, Rosa Parks entered the history books by refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. This was considerd a violation of the segregation laws that were in place at the time, resulting in her arrest, a court appearance and a $14 fine.

Her action led to a huge protest campaign, led by 26-year-old pastor Martin Luther King: for 381 days, black citizens boycotted the bus company. The influential pacifist movement resulted in the abolition of segregation laws one year later by the Supreme Court.

Several years after her arrest, Rosa Parks confessed: "People say that I didn't give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn't true. I was not tired physically (...) No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in."