The boycott also showed that people were willing to go out of their way to improve things for themselves and others. The boycott lasted for over a year; for 383 days people walked huge distances to work, as Ms Pollard said ‘my feets is tired but my soul is rested’ she along with other people showed their determination and huge spirit by walking to work, or paying for taxis. They were committed to their cause.
The boycott was not just a few people; it was a mass movement of hundreds of ordinary people. They weren’t great leaders or powerful people, they were plain and responsible citizens, this allowed others across the United States to empathise with them, with their calm manner they seemed as if they were in the right, making the Montgomery council seem stubborn, unfair and wrong. Immediately giving them the advantage.
The shock value to the white community had a huge impact, many were surprised at how well the boycott had been organised and pulled off, for some it improved their view of African Americans, but as ever with extreme situations it polarised opinions and popularity of white civil councils rose, with membership increasing. However the boycott would have frightened the white community, it threatened their livelihood, most of the people who used the buses were black, and without them the bus owners could go bankrupt. It also affected downtown businesses, as they were further away from black housing African Americans were less likely to shop there. The boycott highlighted the economic power of black people, even if whites would admit it they relied on black people for their income.
Black civil rights groups also gained, NAACP received money from northern sponsorships and donations; people in the north saw the boycott, and had their attention drawn to not only the unfairness of the system but to the fact that black people were willing to stand up for their rights, as a result donations were made to fund the NAACP and the taxi services. Towards the beginning of the boycott the Montgomery improvement association was set up, compromising church ministers and others from the community, Martin Luther King was elected as president and they set about implementing the boycott. The boycott showed the power of the church and the influence church leaders and ministers had. It also produced Martin Luther King, arguably the most well known civil rights leader, as a prominent figure within civil rights. Later on that year MIA joined with other civil right activists from around Atlanta and formed the Southern Christian leadership conference (SLCL).
Throughout the boycott African Americans showed themselves to be respectable, peaceful and even cooperative, whereas the white community responded with stubbornness and even violence. Martin Luther Kings house was bombed, as were other white leaders, even when the buses were finally segregated snipers shot at buses. During the beginning weeks of the boycott Black leaders agreed to meet with the white bus company in order to come to a compromise, they had the minimum demands and were willing to work with the whites; however the bus company refused to compromise. The white community responded in any way they could to try and stop the boycott, people were arrested using old boycott laws, Martin Luther King was charged $500 plus court fees for taking part, taxi drivers charging under the minimum fair were prosecuted and police began to arrest drives for minor traffic offences. This highlighted the stubbornness of the white officials, and showed to the rest of the country the irony of the situation, the African Americans who had been oppressed were walking calmly to work and not responding to violence, whereas the apparently superior white people were acting pettily and some were resorting to violence.
The media played a big part during the boycott, their role was to film the protesters and show their courage and commitment to the world, especially the northern states, it brought the stories into their houses and made them realise what was going on in their own country, it showed the differences between north and south. The Montgomery bus boycott also demonstrated the problem between State and federal law, they were often in contradiction and disagreed, the issue of segregation highlighted this.
The Montgomery bus boycott eventually won, buses were desegregated. In comparison to the years to follow one could say bus segregation in Alabama was not a huge gain, however at the time it was a large amount of progress, it acted as a blue print for further protests and direct action, it showed a nation that the boycotters were serious, and that ordinary African Americans could do something about their situation.