A Legacy in Motion: Celebrating Transit Equity Day
ALBUQUERQUE – Today, community members rode on buses with a Rosa Parks tribute display as an invitation to reflect on the civil rights activist’s legacy which continues to pave the way for her vision of accessible and equitable transportation.
All Albuquerque Rapid Transit (ART) buses, the transit system’s most popular corridor accounting for about 40% of annual ridership, featured the tribute to Parks.
“Rosa Parks’ legacy is a powerful reminder that the community can create the change we want to see,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “That spirit is the foundation for our transit equity initiatives, including Zero Fares, paratransit services for those with mobility challenges, and our safety and cleanliness initiatives that create a better experience for all.”
ABQ RIDE’s 1927 antique bus also made an appearance at three pop-up events around town to engage with students at Lew Wallace Elementary, UNM, and CNM to participate in a reflective activity, explore the antique bus, and to learn about the historic intersection of where the civil rights movement, transportation, and equity meet.
Parks was the founder of the youth council for her local chapter of the NAACP. She was deeply committed to supporting youth activism and her leadership confronted the Jim Crow system of the segregated south. Long before Parks took her seat, 15-year-old named Claudette Colvin was arrested for taking a seat on the bus the year prior.
“I am awe inspired as we prepare the youth to lead the way to an equitable future for generations to come,” said Neema Pickett, the Office of Equity and Inclusion’s Black Community Engagement Liaison. “Activism requires movement and momentum but is always powered by the people to move us forward. A future that transports Black people and all people by bus, by car, by train, by plane, by boat, and by overcoming the borders of our hearts and minds. Black History Month, and in particular Transit Equity Day which celebrates Rosa Parks’ Birthday is an opportunity for us to gather in solidarity and recognition of the great shoulders we stand upon.”
“I am appreciative of what Rosa Parks and Claudette Colvin did to help people move the civil rights movement forward,” said Nefertiti Moses, Executive Assistant for Workforce and Community Success. “Today’s presentation was very touching, because I could feel my ancestors with me.”
The community is invited to take pictures with the Parks tribute on ART buses and engage in the hashtag, #ISitWithRosa.
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ABQ RIDE’s mission is to provide the community with safe, clean, and reliable transportation.
The City of Albuquerque’s Office of Equity and Inclusion’s mission is to inspire and equip city government to make Albuquerque a national role model of racial equity and social justice.