LOCAL>> H.H. Leonards with Dr. LaDonna Boyd - Beyond the Bus

Virtual author event
* Saturday, February 25, 4:00 pm

As part of a tribute to Black History Month (and beyond), Book Passage is featuring this and other special discussions. Tonight’s is highlighting the life and legacy Civil Rights icon, Rosa Parks.

Rosa Parks Beyond the Bus: Life, Lessons, and Leadership is a collection of inspiring and instructive memories compiled from the decade that Mrs. Parks was a guest in author H.H. Leonard’s Washington, DC home.

During those years, Mrs. Leonards was able to know the heart, mind, and spirit of the woman who refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama city bus on December 1, 1955. The author shares her remembrances, both delightful and somber, in a way that offers readers an intimate and personal glimpse into the personhood of Mrs. Parks.

Mrs. Parks is a seminal point in the history of civil, human, and women’s rights. Her story, as told through the eyes of H.H. Leonards, also touches on the journey of African-American women who have somehow managed to survive a system that cared little about the indignities they suffered―from discrimination to sexual assault. While many of her contemporaries attempted to define her as the woman who refused to give up her seat on the bus, she was more than the sum of one pivotal decision.

H.H. Leonards is the Founder of The Mansion on O Street, O Street Museum, PIR Marketing, Beauty Unites and Co-Founder of 51StepsToFreedom.org. The suite of rooms occupied by Mrs. Rosa Parks as “her home-away-from-home for nearly 10 years.

The Mansion on O Street in Washington DC  is an enterprise whose higher purpose is to provide a unique forum where people come to learn from one another and foster the development of diversity, the creative process, and the human spirit. Ms. Leonards has also been the executive director of a global computer foundation.

Throughout her professional career, Ms. Leonards has focused on making it economically feasible for corporations to leverage their philanthropic contributions for their benefit and the benefit of society.

Dr. LaDonna Boyd, EdD, has been leading the historic R.H. Boyd Publishing Corporation since 2017. Focused on nurturing faith and responsible for uplifting Black voices, RHB has been a pivotal force across mediums.

Like her ancestors, Dr. Boyd possesses the knowledge and boldness needed to navigate the company’s continued success in an oversaturated and evolving media industry; through growth and innovation, Dr. Boyd has led her family’s company through challenges and success alike while maintaining the integrity of the Boyd name and its vision.