On Wednesday, July 13, 2022, the United States Congress will accept and dedicate Florida’s new statue of Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune as part of the National Statuary Hall Collection in the U.S. Capitol Building. With the statue’s placement, Dr. Bethune will become the first African American and tenth woman to be so honored.

That afternoon, join the U.S. Capitol Historical Society and its partners – Bethune-Cookman University, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library, and the National Council of Negro Women – for a scholarly symposium exploring the life and legacy of Dr. Bethune, an educator, activist, and stateswoman whose story matters as much today as ever before.

The symposium is free and open to the public by registration. Appetizers and refreshments will be provided.

This program is being presented in collaboration with the Office of U.S. Representative Kathy Castor, and thanks to the generous support of Wells Fargo.

Our speakers include:

The Honorable James Clyburn, Majority Whip of the U.S. House of Representatives; The Honorable Kathy Castor, U.S. Representative for Florida’s 14th District; Dr. Johnnetta Cole, Anthropologist, past President of the National Council of Negro Women and Spellman College; Dr. Thelma T. Daley, National Chair and President of the National Council of Negro Women; Dr. Allida Black, historian and Trustee of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library Dr. Lawrence Drake, Interim President of Bethune-Cookman University; and Dr. Camesha Whittaker, Bethune scholar and motivational speaker