Nonviolence

Harassment grows worse as the boycott continues. Protesters receive threatening phone calls and tickets for trivial violations; their homes are vandalized.

The violence reaches new heights when one day, while Dr. King is at a church meeting, a bomb explodes at his home. His wife, Coretta Scott King, their two-month-old baby, Yolanda, and a friend are inside. Dr. King rushes home as soon as he hears the news. Upon arriving he learns that no one has been hurt. But supporters are crowding around his house. They are furious and ready to fight. King tells them not to fight. "We cannot solve this problem with retaliatory violence," King tells the crowd calmly. "We must meet violence with nonviolence."

QUESTIONS FOR ROSA PARKS
How were the protesters able to stay calm in the face of daily harassment and violence? Find out by reading what Rosa Parks had to say.