Rosa Parks marries Raymond Parks

In 1932, Rosa married Raymond Parks, a barber from Montgomery, at her mother's house.

Raymond was a member of the NAACP, at the time collecting money to support the Scottsboro Boys, a group of black men falsely accused of raping two white women. After her marriage, Rosa took numerous jobs, ranging from domestic worker to hospital aide. At her husband's urging, she finished her high school studies in 1933, at a time when less than 7% of African Americans had a high school diploma. Despite the Jim Crow laws that made political participation by black people difficult, she succeeded in registering to vote on her third try.

Rosa Louise Lee McCauley was born on February 4, 1913 in Tuskegee, Alabama.
Raymond Parks was born on February 12, 1903 in Wedowee in Randolph County, Alabama.

When Rosa and Raymond Died:
Rosa Parks died on October 24, 2005 at her home on the east side of Detroit while she was taking a nap. Rosa had suffered from dementia for several years. She lived in the Riverfront Apartments complex that overlooked the Detroit River and the border with Ontario, Canada.
Rosa Parks made history again on Sunday, October 30, 2005, when she became the first woman to lie in honor, 180 feet below the Capitol dome, in the ornate Rotunda. She was also the second black person to receive this honor.

Raymond Parks died in Detroit, Michigan, on August, 19, 1977, after a five year battle with cancer.

How Rosa and Raymond Met:

When Rosa was nineteen, Rosa and Raymond met one another through a mutual friend. They became friends before they had a romantic relationship with each other. Raymond was an immaculate dresser and considered to be very handsome and charming.
Not attracted to Raymond at first because he was so light-skinned, Rosa resisted his advances for a while, but was wore down by his persistence.

Ages at Wedding:

Rosa was nearly 20 years old, and Raymond was 29 years old at the time of their wedding.
Wedding Date:

On December 18, 1932, Rosa and Raymond were married at her mother's house in Montgomery, Alabama.
Religion:

Rosa and Raymond were members of the African Methodist Episcopal church (AME) and in 1964, Rosa became a deaconess.
Education:
Rosa attended Montgomery Industrial School for Girls, Booker T. Washington High School, and Alabama State College. With the support of Raymond, Rosa went back to school in 1933 and obtained her high-school diploma.
Although Raymond did not have a formal education, he did hunger for knowledge. Self taught, he had a thorough knowledge of domestic affairs and current events. Many people thought he was college educated. He spent his life encouraging others to get an education.

Children:
Although Rosa is known as the Mother of the Civil Rights Movement, Raymond and Rosa had no children of their own.
Residence:

Raymond and Rosa never owned their own home.
Occupations:

Early in her life, Rosa was a dressmaker, a seamstress, a life insurance agent, and a housekeeper. In her later years, Rosa was a hotel supervisor, civil rights activist, speaker, and author. From March 1, 1965 through 1988, Rosa was a staff assistant for Congressman John Conyers, Jr.
In 1987, Rosa founded the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development to offer career training for kids aged 12 to 18.

Raymond was a barber and civil rights activist and encouraged black people to vote. He worked secretly for the National Committee to Save the Scottsboro Boys and was later a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Interests:

Rosa loved singing and praying. Raymond loved poetry and reading.

She received her high school diploma in 1934, after her marriage to Raymond Parks, December 18, 1932. Raymond, now deceased was born in Wedowee, Alabama, Randolph County, February 12, 1903, received little formal education due to racial segregation. He was a self-educated person with the assistance of his mother, Geri Parks. His immaculate dress and his thorough knowledge of domestic affairs and current events made most think he was college educated. He supported and encouraged Rosa's desire to complete her formal education.

Mr. Parks was an early activist in the effort to free the "Scottsboro Boys," a celebrated case in the 1930's. Together, Raymond and Rosa worked in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP's) programs. He was an active member and she served as secretary and later youth leader of the local branch. At the time of her arrest, she was preparing for a major youth conference.

When Rosa met her husband in Montgomery, Alabama, Raymond, a 29-year-old barber, was active in the NAACP and the campaign to free the Scottsboro Boys, 9 young black men who had been convicted (8 of whom were sentenced to die in the electric chair) for raping two white women, despite no real evidence. As a couple, they became even more involved in civil rights and Rosa became the secretary and later youth leader of the local NAACP branch. Raymond, whose education was limited by segregation, had educated himself and encouraged and supported Rosa to pursue her education. And in1934, two years after their marriage, Rosa got the high school degree she couldn't get earlier because her mother's illness forced her to quit school. Rosa said that Raymond was the first person she met "who was never actually afraid of white people.... Parks believed in being a man and expected to be treated as a man."