Rosa Parks was an iconic civil rights legend who is best known for her refusal to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955. This act of civil disobedience sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott and helped to launch the civil rights movement. She was arrested and convicted for violating segregation laws, but her actions were seen as a symbol of resistance against racial injustice. Parks was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1999 for her contributions to the civil rights movement.