Too little, too late
Montgomery apologizes to Rosa Parks
Has it changed? Well, first of all, I don't always agree with holding people responsible for something that happened a long time ago. For instance, it doesn't make any sense to blame Germans today for the Holocaust. So I don't necessarily believe the current leaders of Montgomery owed Mrs. Parks an apology. But if you're going to apologize, don't wait until they die before you do it. That looks cowardly and weak, and it could be interpreted as evidence of lingering hatred/fear/ignorance. At least that's how it looks from my ivory tower up here in the enlightened Northeast.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. --The City Coucil has a message for late civil rights icon Rosa Parks and other blacks who were mistreated in Montgomery during the 1950s: We're sorry.
The majority-white council voted unanimously Tuesday to make a formal apology to Parks, who died in October....
The Rev. Joseph Rembert, who was Parks' pastor before she left Montgomery following her arrest, said he was "elated" over the vote.
"It shows Montgomery has changed," he said.
Has it changed? Well, first of all, I don't always agree with holding people responsible for something that happened a long time ago. For instance, it doesn't make any sense to blame Germans today for the Holocaust. So I don't necessarily believe the current leaders of Montgomery owed Mrs. Parks an apology. But if you're going to apologize, don't wait until they die before you do it. That looks cowardly and weak, and it could be interpreted as evidence of lingering hatred/fear/ignorance. At least that's how it looks from my ivory tower up here in the enlightened Northeast.
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