Mary McLeod Bethune in Florida: Bringing Social Justice to the Sunshine State

Mary McLeod Bethune was often called the First Lady of Negro America, but she made significant contributions to the political climate of Florida as well. From the founding of the Daytona Literary and Industrial School for Training Negro Girls in 1904, Bethune galvanized African American women for change. She created an environment in Daytona Beach that, despite racial tension throughout the state, allowed Jackie Robinson to begin his journey to integrating Major League Baseball less than two miles away from her school. Today, her legacy lives through a number of institutions, including Bethune-Cookman University and the Mary McLeod Bethune Foundation National Historic Landmark. Historian Ashley Robertson explores the life, leadership and amazing contributions of this dynamic activist.


About the Author
Robertson, Dr Ashley N.: - Ashley N. Robertson, PhD, was born in Oxford, North Carolina, and is a curator and museum director for the Mary McLeod Bethune Foundation-National Historic Landmark at Bethune-Cookman University, where she is also an assistant professor of history. Dr. Robertson graduated from Howard University in 2013 with a PhD in African Diaspora History and she also holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Bowie State University and a master of arts in African American Studies from Temple University.