The Supreme Court has allowed Rosa Parks to go forward with a lawsuit stemming from the OutKast song named after the legendary civil rights activist. The group sought to stop the lawsuit from the 90-year-old Parks, but the court made no move to halt the case.
Officially, the case is under LaFace Records v. Parks , case 03-504.
Since the song emerged as a hit in 1998, Parks has maintained that the multi-platinum rap group profited on her name and even defamed her in the song. While it is named after Parks, it doesn't mention her by name. The hook of the song says, "Ah-ha, hush that fuss. Everybody move to the back of the bus."
OutKast has claimed that the song "Rosa Parks" is protected by the First Amendment and that it does not falsely advertise the woman's name.
Initially, Parks lost a federal appeal, but a three-judge panel in the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, partially reversed the earlier decision. Now, the case returns to a lower court.
Parks is requesting that her name be removed from all future recordings of the tune.
Parks made history in December 1955 when she was arrested for refusing to give her seat to a White man on a Montgomery, Alabama city bus. Her arrest partially led to a successful boycott of the bus company and played a pivotal role in the eventual desegregation of public transportation.