Civil rights icon remembered for strength

updated 2:18 p.m. ET March 2, 2008

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - The number of people who knew Johnnie Carr as "Mama" is too high to count, even though she had only three children, said those who remembered the civil rights icon at her funeral Saturday.

Carr, a childhood friend of Rosa Parks, helped organize the Montgomery bus boycott, which led to the start of the modern civil rights movement. She died Feb. 22 after suffering a stroke; she was 97.

"Dr. Carr was 'Mama Carr' to me, and the family understands that," said state Rep. John Knight, D-Montgomery. "She would spank me from time to time. My mother and father needed help with me, and she gave that assistance."

Montgomery Mayor Bobby Bright also remembered Carr as a nurturing mother figure whose small stature belied her firm dedication and fierce determination.

"Thank you, thank you for sharing her with us," Bright said to Carr's family, adding he was honored that Carr had nicknamed him "her mayor."

"We're so fortunate worldwide, and particularly here in Montgomery, of having her in our midst to always be that example of pride, but most importantly of motherhood. She was our mama," Bright said. "She helped us when we needed her. She would pick us up when we fell. She would console us when we were hurting, and she always inspired us with words of encouragement."

Hundreds attended the service at Alabama State University, where Carr had received an honorary doctorate. The service included prepared statements from President Bush, who called Carr "a true patriot and staunch advocate for civil rights," and Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, who proclaimed "long live the legacy of Mrs. Johnnie Carr and her works."

'Heaven belongs to you'
Local and state officials also attended, along with Oscar-nominated actress Cicely Tyson, who starred in "The Rosa Parks Story" in 2002.

"I say heaven belongs to you, Johnnie Carr," Tyson said after reciting a poem in her friend's honor. "Heaven belongs to you."

A grandmotherly figure who was ever-present at community events, Carr was known for arms that were always open and ready to hug, wise eyes that twinkled and lips that adversity couldn't keep from turning up into frequent, soft smiles.

Carr became president of the Montgomery Improvement Association in 1967, a post that she held until her death.

Rob Carr / AP Johnnie Carr talks about memorial plans for Rosa Parks during a news conference on Oct. 25, 2005, in Montgomery, Ala.

Her presidency succeeded that of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who was named the original leader of the group. It was formed after the boycott of city buses began in 1955 in protest of Parks' arrest for refusing to relinquish her seat to a white man on a crowded bus.

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down racial segregation on public transportation a year later.

"She was about 5 foot 5 in height, but when she stood up she was a 9-foot giant against prejudice and discrimination," said the Rev. Frank Johnson of Hall St. Baptist Church, where Carr worshipped. "She would talk the talk, but she also walked the walk."

Draped in a massive arrangement of red roses, Carr's white and silver casket was flanked by more than 40 floral wreaths and displays in front of a stage set up at the Joe L. Reed Acadome. The funeral preceded a standing-room-only memorial service that was held at Carr's church on Friday.

"I thank her today for her support. She was a work horse, but she could be a show horse when she wanted to," said the Rev. Joseph Lowery, president emeritus of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

She spoke at Parks' funeral
At Parks' funeral just three years ago, Lowery recalled, Carr was to give a small talk, "and she got happy and tried to stay all day," he said to laughter. "And the crowd rejoiced at her witness because they knew at her age the marvel they were experiencing, that Johnnie Carr could just stand there and recall with power the historic moments of her life."

Carr and her husband of 61 years, Arlam Carr Sr., registered hundreds of Montgomery voters, and the couple helped desegregate Montgomery schools with a 1964 lawsuit on behalf of their son, Arlam Jr. They also worked to desegregate the city's parks.

The senior Carr died in 1995 at age 95.

"There were some in the 1950s in Montgomery, Ala., who looked at this city and the depths of segregation and said, 'Why? Why, Lord did you make some of your children so cruel? ... Why Lord did you separate us?'" U.S. Rep. Artur Davis, D-Birmingham, said.

"And then there was Johnnie; she had a different approach. A 'why not?' approach. She looked at the parks and contemplated black and white children playing there together and said, 'Why not?' She looked at Montgomery and the notion of one Montgomery without walls between east and west and said, 'Why not?'"

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