Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site

04/06/2022

“I poured out of my heart and mind and into his ears the needs—the desires and the aspirations of my people. Since that visit, we have seen the path of our opportunities broaden into a wide thoroughfare. He believed truly that all men should have equality of opportunity regardless of race, creed or color.” ~ from #MaryMcLeodBethune’s “Tribute to Franklin D. Roosevelt”, April 13, 1945. Who has believed in or supported a cause close to your hear? #WednesdayWords #ImbibeIt #Bethunism #History #BlackHistory

04/05/2022

Did you know there was a musical inspired by Bethune's life? Check out this newspaper ad from The Canberra Times February 22, 1962.

04/04/2022

#MaryMcLeodBethune was awarded the 21st Spingarn Medal by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (#NAACP) at its 26th annual conference in St. Louis in June 1935. She was presented with the award for outstanding leadership and service to education due to her accomplishments in establishing and growing Bethune-Cookman College (now University) almost single-handedly in the face of nearly insuperable difficulties. The Spingarn Medal is the highest honor of the NAACP. It has been awarded annually for the highest achievement of a living African American in the preceding year or years. The list of Spingarn awardees reads as a veritable “Who’s Who” of African Americans in fields such as politics, the military, medicine, arts, entertainment, and sports. Awardees include W.E.B. Du Bois, George Washington Carver, Marian Anderson, Paul Robeson, A. Philip Randolph, Thurgood Marshall, Ralph Bunche, Jackie Robinson, Duke Ellington, Colin Powell, and Sidney Poitier. #MondaysWithMrsBethune #History #BlackHistory #ImbibeIt

Image Credit: NAACP

04/03/2022

This photo candidly captures the close relationship between Mary McLeod Bethune and Eleanor Roosevelt. This photo was taken by Martin Gross, most likely in Florida, in 1936. Taken just towards the end of Franklin Roosevelt’s first term as president, this photo highlights how quickly Bethune became a trusted friend and advisor to the presidential couple.
Photo 1: Black and white photo of Mary McLeod Bethune and Eleanor Roosevelt smiling and laughing together. Martin Gross, C 1936 (https://stars.library.ucf.edu/cfm-images/971)

04/02/2022

National Capital Parks-East (U.S. National Park Service)

Here in the DC metropolitan area, we are lucky to have LOTS of great National Park sites to visit and learn from.

What’s your favorite DC area park?

The number of sites can make things difficult from a management perspective. That’s why all these sites are grouped into larger park units. We are a proud part of National Capital Parks East. This park oversees National Park sites in the eastern part of DC and the surrounding Maryland area. We have an amazing diversity of stories to tell. Throughout the month of April, we encourage you to #DiscoverSomethingNew and learn about some of the other sites within National Capital Parks East. Follow along as we explore some on our page and visit www.nps.gov/nace to learn more.

#DiscoverSomethingNew #FindYourPark #EncuentraTuParque

Superintendent's Compendium

04/02/2022

Yesterday afternoon, the Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS was fortunate to have received a visit from renowned, New York Times best-selling author Victoria Christopher Murray, who is working on a project about our beloved Mary McLeod Bethune. Like her subject, Ms. Murray is a lover of African American and Women’s History and she is a member of both the NCNW and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Keep a look out for her book in the future, and if you have not heard—the Council House is reopened to the public for tours on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Visit https://www.nps.gov/mamc/planyourvisit/guidedtours.htm for more information inclusive of Covid restrictions. #MaryMcLeodBethune #NCNW #DeltaSigmaTheta #ImbibeIt #FindYourPark #VictoriaChristopherMurray #Writer #Creativity

04/02/2022

Mary McLeod Bethune Council House: A Headquarters for Change

Last Friday, as part of the United States Capitol Historical Society’s Series on Mary McLeod Bethune, Park Ranger John Fowler lectured about the Council House, Mrs. Bethune, the NCNW, and their roles in history. Take a look at the link!

And don’t forget, Mrs. Bethune’s statue will be placed in National Statuary Hall in the United States Capitol later this year. She will be the first African American to represent a state specifically (Florida). #MaryMcLeodBethune #NCNW #FindYourPark #ImbibeIt #History #BlackHistory #BlackWomensHistory #WomensHistory #AmericanHistory

In this webinar, the U.S. Capitol Historical Society continued our series on the life and legacy of Mary McLeod Bethune—the leader of the "Black Cabinet" dur...

04/01/2022

#DidYouKnow in 1954, Mrs. Bethune participated in the World Assembly for Moral Re-Armament in Caux, Switzerland. This event, near the end of her life, left Mrs. Bethune deeply moved. In a July 1954 interview, she stated her convictions: “In Moral Re-Armament I have seen the nations of the world standing together regardless of race, class, or color. To be a part of this great uniting force of our age is the crowning experience of my life.”

Have you ever seen or been a part of something that moved you deeply? What has been your “crowning experience”? #MaryMcLeodBethune #ImbibeIt #TheCrowningExperience #MoralReArmament #FeatureFriday

Image Credit: MRA Photos Caux

03/31/2022

Today, we remember #CesarChavez. Cesar was a labor and civil rights activist and co-founder of the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), which later merged with the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC) to become the United Farm Workers (UFW) labor union. Like labor unions, the #NCNW was present and well represented at the #MarchOnWashington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. #TBT #LaborUnion #CivilRights #LaborMovement #CivilRightsMovement #CesarChavezDay

Image Credit: Cathy Murphy

03/30/2022

Anacostia River Festival 2022 Volunteer Opportunities

‼️ Volunteer Opportunity ‼️

The 11th Street Bridge Park and National Park Service are celebrating Anacostia's rich history through music at the 8th Annual Anacostia River Festival on April 10th!

The event is in person again this year and we are seeking event day volunteers to assist in shifts with setup, welcoming, ushering, and more!

Find further information and sign up through Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/anacostia-river-festival-2022-volunteer-opportunities-tickets-277119199987.

#NPSvolunteer #anacostiapark #anacostiariverfestival

Let's get excited about volunteering during our first in person Anacostia River Festival in 3 years!

03/30/2022

Allow us to introduce you to our rock-star Permits Specialist, Lakita Hall!

"I am a Washingtonian born and raised in S.E., D.C. It is an honor to now work in D.C. and serve the citizens of my community as Park Ranger Special Use Permits Specialist. I came into the National Park Service in September of 2015. In the past years, I've served as a Fee Collector (C&O Canal), Park Guide (Fort Washington Park, Oxon Hill Farm, & Frederick Douglass National Historic Site), Assistant to the Superintendent's Office (Piscataway Park) and now Permits Specialist (National Capital Parks-East).

My career with the parks has been nothing short of amazing. I'd like to thank my mentors and supporters so far: Wanda Washington (Concessions Specialist), Anale Young (Contract Specialist), and Adam Gresek (Supervisory Park Ranger/Interpretation) for all of the knowledge and guidance with every position I have held at the park. Joys of being in the field ranging from hiking, biking, skating (Anacostia Skate Pavilion), and of course monitoring some of the biggest events in D.C. here at Anacostia. I truly love this green space and will look forward to years to come serving my community and representing National Capital Parks-East with honor.

-Lakita" #WomensHistoryMonth #FindYourPark #WomenInParksWednesday

03/30/2022

“Here in this blessed land there are countless opportunities for untied efforts to improve and strengthen the principles upon which America was founded. The women of the National Council of Negro Women must strive without ceasing for the dawning of the day when all men shall be up and no man down.” ~ #MaryMcLeodBethune speaking on the #NCNW in 1950.

Are the principles upon which America was founded still relevant today? #WednesdayWords #ImbibeIt #Bethunism #History #BlackHistory #America #WomensHistory #WomensHistoryMonth

Image Credit: Smithsonian NMAH, Archives Center

03/29/2022

The Mary McLeod Bethune Council House NHS is reopening to the public for ranger-guided tours on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays starting on Thursday, March 31st. Tours will be offered beginning at 9:30 am and will be given every thirty minutes, with the exception of 12 noon to 1 pm, and the last tour will occur at 4 pm.

Due to COVID protocols, only five visitors will be allowed on tours at a time, and no more than ten visitors will be allowed in the historic home at a time.

Visit www.nps.gov/mamc for more information.

03/29/2022

Photos from ASALH: Association for the Study of African American Life and History's post

03/29/2022

Everyone should learn about the great #EllaBaker! #WomensHistoryMonth #CivilRights #Activism #Strategist #Organizer #NAACP #SNCC #SCLC #MississippiFreedomDemocraticParty #History #BlackHistory #BlackWomensHistory #WomensHistory #AmericanHistory

03/29/2022

Trailblazers: Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825-1911)

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper's achievements include her activities as a reformer in the abolition movement, in the women's rights movement, in the temperance movement, and in the civil rights movement. In addition, her poetry and essays are significant because she used them as vehicles to comment upon the experiences of African Americans.

Harper was born to free Black parents in Baltimore, Maryland in 1825. At age twenty-six, she moved to Columbus, Ohio, where she taught domestic science at Union Seminary. Shortly after her departure, Maryland enacted a law forbidding free blacks living in the North to immigrate into that state. The penalty was imprisonment and sale into slavery. Harper decided to dedicate her efforts to the anti-slavery crusade. She spent the next eight years traveling around the United States, delivering anti-slavery lectures, and writing essays and poems about what she observed in the States. Her essays and poems were widely circulated in Black journals and she published a variety of novels, short stories, and poetry collections, most of which focused on the quality of life of African Americans.

In addition to her abolitionist activities, Harper was committed to the temperance movement and the struggle for women’s rights. She believed that alcohol was linked to the decline of the Black community and wrote multiple poems on this topic. Harper was also focused on women’s suffrage and the pursuit of equal rights, job opportunities, and education for Black women. She was a member of the American Equal Suffrage Association, and later formed the American Woman Suffrage Association with Frederick Douglass and other reformers.

#FindYourPark #EncuentraTuParque #AfricanBurialGroundNM #BlackHistory #WomensHistoryMonth #WomensHistoryMonth2022

Image Caption: Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
Image Credit: WIKIPEDIA