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An award-winning serigraph illustrating civil rights activist Rosa Park’s historic bus ride was unveiled by community leaders inside St. Francis Medical Center Wednesday morning.

The dedication and blessing ceremony which not only celebrated Black History Month but also Park’s birthday on February 4, featured guest speakers including the drawing’s artist, Lynwood’s mayor and a former California congresswoman.

“I feel totally blessed to be able to create a likeness of Rosa Parks that will forever be a part of history,” said Jameel Rasheed, artist of “Quiet Courage.”

About 100 people were in attendance to see the reveling of “Quiet Courage” inside the St. Francis Medical Center emergency department’s waiting room.

“‘Quiet Courage’ exemplifies dignity, respect and wholeness spirit...values embraced by St. Francis Medical Center,” said Gerald Kozai, president and CEO of St. Francis Medical Center. “It embodies our vision of serving those who are sick and those who are living in the poorest economic levels.

Rasheed, a former St. Francis Medical Center patient, was instructed to create a piece of art based on Rosa Parks.

The result was “Quiet Courage” which he was able to get autographed by Parks.

“Beyond words” is the way Rasheed describes his encounter with Parks, a question he said is frequently asked.

The autographed edition of “Quiet Courage” was blessed with holy water after its
disclosure.

“Mr. Rasheed’s serigraph had been hanging in our emergency department for about the last 18 months and we really felt that his serigraph depicted the respect and dignity that we feel every patient that comes to St. Francis should receive,” Kozai said.

He added that the hospital is reigning what Parks had done in her quiet courage.

“The dedication and blessing of this symbolic serigraph represents the commitment we hold in our community and its neighbors to advocate for social justice for every individual to be the voice of those who are overlooked and underrepresented in today’s society,” Kozai said

“Quiet Courage” is under consideration to become a commemorative United States postal stamp.

“She (Rosa Parks) sparked the movement that caught on not only across the county but around the world,” said Diane Watson, former California Congresswoman.

Jim Morton, mayor of Lynwood said Rasheed’s illustration is what the city needs.

“We need change,” he said. “We go through the same thing year after year after year and you bring someone like Rosa Parks to bring positive change not only to this country but other countries all over the world. I’m sure she’s an inspiration to them as she is to us.”

The Lynwood transit center is named after the civil rights activist who fought for racial equality in a segregated bus. “Quiet Courage” is also displayed inside Lynwood City Hall, which Mayor Morton invited the community to go see.

“Her (Parks) actions stated the kind of tyranny that people of color were filled under at that time and in many ways still today,” said Watson.