Rosa Parks Day is celebrated each year on February 4th in honor of civil rights activist Rosa Parks. It commemorates the day in 1955 when Parks refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama, launching the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Her act of defiance helped catalyze the civil rights movement in the United States. Riddles can be a fun and thought-provoking way to reflect on Rosa Parks’ legacy and the broader fight for racial equality. In this article, we provide 57 riddles about Rosa Parks Day along with detailed answers. Some focus directly on details from Parks’ life and the Montgomery Bus Boycott, while others touch on broader themes related to civil rights, social justice, and standing up for one’s beliefs. Each riddle aims to educate as well as entertain. Read on for a collection of 57 Rosa Parks Day riddles with answers!
List of 57 Rosa Parks Day Riddles with Answers
Riddle 1
I refused to stand on a bus one day, which led to a mass boycott that lasted more than a year. I stood up for justice and equality. Who am I?
Answer: Rosa Parks
Riddle 2
We were a civil rights organization that Rosa Parks served as secretary of. Our name stands for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. What are we?
Answer: NAACP
Riddle 3
What Southern city was home to the bus boycott inspired by Rosa Parks’ protest?
Answer: Montgomery, Alabama
Riddle 4
He was the famous minister who led the Montgomery Bus Boycott. He promoted peaceful protest in the struggle for civil rights. Who is he?
Answer: Martin Luther King, Jr.
Riddle 5
We were Black women activists who led the boycott by mobilizing carpools and taxis to help people avoid taking the buses. Who are we?
Answer: Jo Ann Robinson and the Women’s Political Council
Riddle 6
Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her bus seat to this race.
Answer: White
Riddle 7
More than 50,000 flyers were printed announcing Rosa Parks’ arrest and calling for this action against bus segregation.
Answer: Boycott
Riddle 8
Rosa Parks was a seamstress at a local department store before becoming famous. What was the name of the store?
Answer: Montgomery Fair
Riddle 9
Rosa Parks received this prestigious honor from President Bill Clinton in 1996.
Answer: The Congressional Medal of Honor
Riddle 10
After the boycott, Rosa Parks moved to Detroit and worked for many years for this U.S. Congressman from Michigan.
Answer: John Conyers
Riddle 11
What number bus was Rosa Parks riding when she refused to give up her seat?
Answer: Bus 2802
Riddle 12
Rosa Parks helped give birth to this civil rights organization founded in 1957.
Answer: Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
Riddle 13
Rosa Parks lived on this street in Montgomery where the first organizational meetings of the boycott were held.
Answer: S. Jackson Street
Riddle 14
In 1955, this was the fare to ride Montgomery buses, which Parks refused to pay twice when forced to enter through the back door.
Answer: 10 cents
Riddle 15
The landmark Supreme Court case that deemed Montgomery’s bus segregation unconstitutional was known by this short name.
Answer: Browder v. Gayle
Riddle 16
What crime was Rosa Parks charged with after refusing to give up her seat?
Answer: Disorderly conduct
Riddle 17
Rosa Parks was only age 42 when she was arrested in 1955. How old was she when she passed away in 2005?
Answer: 92 years old
Riddle 18
I refused to drive the city buses during the boycott. Instead, I organized carpools to help protest segregation. Who am I?
Answer: E.D. Nixon
Riddle 19
Rosa Parks helped desegregate the University of Alabama when she joined this civil rights organization in registering Black students in 1956.
Answer: NAACP
Riddle 20
Rosa Parks was sitting in this row on the bus when she was arrested for not giving up her seat.
Answer: Fifth row
Riddle 21
What street did Rosa Parks board the fateful bus on December 1, 1955?
Answer: Cleveland Avenue
Riddle 22
I was Rosa Park’s mother. She cared for me as I aged and became ill. Who am I?
Answer: Leona McCauley
Riddle 23
In the 381 days of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Rosa Parks was the only woman arrested for violating segregation laws.
Answer: True
Riddle 24
Rosa Parks was sitting next to this Black man on the bus who informed her he could not be arrested for refusing to move.
Answer: Reverend F.D. Reese
Riddle 25
What was the name of the white bus driver who demanded Rosa Parks give up her seat?
Answer: James F. Blake
Riddle 26
This civil rights icon and NAACP executive bailed Rosa Parks out of jail after her arrest.
Answer: Edgar Nixon
Riddle 27
Rosa Parks was a member of the youth council of this organization which aimed to register Black voters.
Answer: NAACP
Riddle 28
Rosa Parks rode at the front of this Alabama university’s integrated bus in 1956 after transit segregation was ruled unconstitutional.
Answer: University of Alabama
Riddle 29
This civil rights activist refused to pay a $10 fine after being convicted for her bus protest, appealing her case instead.
Answer: Rosa Parks
Riddle 30
This pioneering Black journalist covered Parks’ arrest and the Montgomery Bus Boycott for the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper.
Answer: Simeon Booker
Riddle 31
After her arrest, Rosa Parks faced threats to her life, causing her to make this change for safety reasons.
Answer: She moved houses
Riddle 32
Rosa Parks published these four significant books recounting her experiences.
Answer: Rosa Parks: My Story, Quiet Strength, Dear Mrs. Parks, and Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words
Riddle 33
In 1999, Time magazine named Rosa Parks one of the 20 most influential people of this century.
Answer: The 20th century
Riddle 34
This civil rights organization founded by Rosa Parks provided after-school tutoring to young people.
Answer: The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development
Riddle 35
I was Rosa Park’s husband who fully supported her activism despite threats to our family. Who am I?
Answer: Raymond Parks
Riddle 36
Rosa Parks received more than what number of death threats due to activism?
Answer: Over 30
Riddle 37
Rosa Parks rode in the front of an integrated bus in this Southern state after the boycott, resisting that state’s bus segregation laws.
Answer: Tennessee
Riddle 38
This civil rights activist bailed Rosa Parks out of jail and became her longtime friend.
Answer: Virginia Durr
Riddle 39
I was the attorney who represented Rosa Parks after her arrest and filed suit against Montgomery’s segregation laws. Who am I?
Answer: Fred Gray
Riddle 40
Rosa Parks received the Congressional Gold Medal in 1999, the highest honor Congress can bestow on a civilian.
Answer: True
Riddle 41
In 1965, Rosa Parks moved to Detroit and worked as a receptionist and later an aide here.
Answer: In U.S. Representative John Conyers’ congressional office
Riddle 42
What was Rosa Parks’ first name at birth?
Answer: Rosa Louise
Riddle 43
Rosa Parks was escorted to a “colored” section of this major department store during a visit to Alabama in 1960, catalyzing a year-long boycott.
Answer: Gimbel’s
Riddle 44
Rosa Parks received the first Southern Christian Leadership Conference Woman of the Year Award in what year?
Answer: 1957
Riddle 45
Rosa Parks was fired from her job as a seamstress at a Montgomery department store when her boss learned she had been arrested.
Answer: False, she quit voluntarily.
Riddle 46
In the 1950s, this activist organization led by Rosa Parks focused on criminal justice and worked to free Black men on Alabama’s death row.
Answer: Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA)
Riddle 47
Rosa Parks participated in the Montgomery Bus Boycott for 382 days until a federal ruling forced the city to end bus segregation in December 1956.
Answer: True
Riddle 48
When Rosa Parks attended segregated schools in Pine Level, Alabama as a child, this civil rights icon was one of her teachers.
Answer: Booker T. Washington
Riddle 49
In 1994, Rosa Parks published her memoirs entitled “Rosa Parks: My Story,” chronicling her life and experiences leading up to and during this movement.
Answer: The Montgomery Bus Boycott
Riddle 50
What Southern state was Rosa Parks born in?
Answer: Alabama
Riddle 51
Rosa Parks was a longtime member of this major civil rights organization before her bus protest.
Answer: NAACP
Riddle 52
In 1955, around 75% of riders on Montgomery buses were this race, but were forced to sit in the back.
Answer: African American
Riddle 53
Rosa Parks was honored with a statue depicting her historic bus protest in the U.S. Capitol’s National Statuary Hall in 2013.
Answer: True
Riddle 54
What was the name of the bus company that operated Montgomery’s segregated buses?
Answer: Montgomery City Lines
Riddle 55
Rosa Parks was arrested on December 1st, 1955. What day of the week did her arrest fall on?
Answer: Thursday
Riddle 56
In 1955, Rosa Parks was working as a seamstress at a local department store. What was her second job?
Answer: Secretary for the NAACP
Riddle 57
Where are Rosa Parks’ ashes interred?
Answer: At the National Cathedral in Washington D.C.
Conclusion
Rosa Parks was an inspirational figure whose courageous stand against injustice sparked a mass movement that transformed America. Her quiet dignity and resilience in the face of death threats speaks volumes about her deep commitment to equality. These riddles aim to honor Parks’ legacy and encourage ongoing reflection about the unfinished fight for civil rights. They highlight key moments in Parks’ life, from her childhood education to her historic arrest and the year-long Montgomery Bus Boycott. Several riddles emphasize the many partners and organizations that worked alongside Parks before and during the boycott, underscoring that it took a community of supporters to challenge segregation. As we celebrate Rosa Parks Day, may we continue striving together for a more just society in the spirit of her dignified persistence.
