ROSA PARKS

Enneagram Type 9 (The Peace-Seeker) with a 1 Wing

Schlesinger Library, RIAS, Harvard University, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

Why we think Rosa Parks is a Type 9

  • Demeanor. Her demeanor was quiet, dignified, serene, and modest. In interviews, she was soft-spoken with a calm and measured tone.

  • Quiet strength. The title of her 1995 novella Quiet Strength is a phrase we often use to describe the Type 9 at the highest level of consciousness.

  • Aversion toward negativity. She seems to dislike talking about negative feelings; she wants to eliminate negativity and move towards peace and inclusion for all.

  • Emphasis on serenity. Her feeling at the moment she chose to undertake her most famous action indicates she realized it was no longer possible to accept the existing situation and that serenity wasn’t possible if she simply “went with the flow”

  • Peaceful resistance. Her act of resistance seems to have come from a place of inner peace grounded in having made up her mind.

  • Community-oriented activism. Her roles in activism work were collaborative and cooperative; she preferred to work with and support others rather than compete.

  • Principled. She was deeply concerned with ethics and her principles (indicates a 1 Wing).

Rosa Parks quotes that show she is a Type 9

  • “Everyone living together in peace and harmony and love - that’s the goal that we seek, and I think that the more people there are who reach that state of mind, the better we will all be.”

  • “It takes more than one person to bring about peace - it takes all of us.”

  • “Stand for something or you will fall for anything. Today’s mighty oak is yesterday’s nut that held its ground” (indicative of 1 Wing).

  • “You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it is right” (indicative of 1 Wing).

  • “I would like to be known as a person who is concerned about freedom and equality and justice and prosperity for all people” (indicative of 1 Wing).

  • “Each person must live their life as a model for others” (indicative of 1 Wing).

  • "Our mistreatment was just not right, and I was tired of it" (indicative of 1 Wing).

  • “I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear” (indicative of 1 Wing).