Mary McLeod Bethune may not be one whose name stands out in your mind, but her impact on our country has been long-lasting. Bethune is the daughter of enslaved parents and went on to become one of the most important educators, government officials, and civil rights activists in the Black community. She began with a dream to become a missionary, but with no church willing to sponsor her, she moved on to becoming an educator.
By 1904, as a single mother in Florida, she decided to open a boarding school: the Daytona Beach Literary and Industrial School for Training Negro Girls. By 1929, her school had transformed into a college, integrating with an all-male school, and becoming the Bethune-Cookman College. By 1943, students were receiving degrees from Bethune’s college. In 2006, the school added their first master’s program and by 2007 it was officially entitled Bethune-Cookman University.
In the same way she was a champion for Black students, she was an activist for racial and gender quality. She led voter registration drives in 1920 once women were able to vote and by 1936, she was the highest ranked Black woman in government. As a friend of Eleanor Roosevelt, Bethune was named the Director of Nego Affairs of the National Youth Administration. She remained in this role for eight years. As a board member, she fought for racial integration for the Women’s Army Corps.
While working hard for the others across the country, Bethune was still a single mother, working hard to provide for her son. She moved from selling insurance to co-founding the Central Life Insurance Company of Tampa. Bethune paved a way for many, and especially Black women, and left a legacy of empowerment with anyone she met.
Her last words were a dedication to her ongoing legacy: “I leave you love…I leave you hope…I leave you the challenge of developing confidence in one another…I leave you racial dignity…I leave you finally a responsibility to our young people”.
Just as Bethune challenged her peers to continue in the betterment of our world for the youth to come, we at CASA of Tarrant County believe the youth around us deserve a world full of love, hope, and racial dignity. Each of our volunteers and staff choose to continue doing the hard work for the sake of the youth and families we impact. So, to each of you, we say thank you. Thank you for your true dedication to pursuing a better future for our young people.