What is the background to the Montgomery Bus Boycott?

The Montgomery Bus Boycott, which took place from Dec. 5, 1955, to Dec. 20, 1956, was a civil rights protest during which many African Americans refused to ride city buses in Montgomery, Alabama, to challenge the segregated seating laws. The boycott came four days after Rosa Parks was famously arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on the bus.

The boycott, led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., proved to be very effective, and on June 5, 1956, a U.S. District Court ruled in Browder v. Gayle that Alabama’s racial segregation laws for buses were unconstitutional. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld this decision on appeal.