Rice University professor Douglas Brinkley considers Dec. 1, 1955, one of the most significant days in American history. He tells host Scott Tong why — it was the day Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man.
Brinkley is also the author of “Rosa Parks: A Life,” and contributor to the new National Geographic book “1,000 Days in America: An Illustrated History of the Moments That Defined a Nation.”
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2026 WBUR
