Mary Mcleod Bethune: American educator and civil rights leader (1875-1955)
Mary McLeod Bethune (or Mary Jane McLeod Bethune; July 10, 1875 - May 18, 1955) was a black educator and civil and women's rights leader.
Mary McLeod Bethune | |
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.jpg) Bethune photographed by Carl Van Vechten on April 6, 1949 | |
| Born | Mary Jane McLeod July 10, 1875 Mayesville, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Died | May 18, 1955 (aged 79) Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S. |
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| Spouse(s) | Albertus Bethune (m. 1898; sep 1907) |
| Children | 1 |
The daughter of former slaves, Bethune believed that education was the key to racial advancement. She served as the president of the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs and was the founder of the National Council of [Black] Women. She also founded the Daytona Educational and Industrial Training School for [Black] Girls, which later became Bethune-Cookman College. At Daytona Educational and Industrial Training School for [Black] Girls, she became the first African American woman to serve as a college president. She was a key organizer for the Federal Council on [Black] Affairs, which was an advisory board to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1945, she was the only African American women to present at the opening of the United Nations, and won the Medal of Honor and Merit at the Haitian Exposition. She merged 28 different organizations to help improve the lives of women and their children, and through her organizations she helped African American women into military roles through the Women's Army Corps during World War II.
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