For the month of March phenomenal women throughout history are celebrated for their accomplishments, that have helped shape history. Women such as Mary McLeod Bethune, the educator, Marjory Stoneman Douglas, the environmental activist and Zora Neale Hurston, the folklorist and many others are recognized for their dedication and passion.

Women have become more empowered and unafraid to speak up on social issues such as equal pay, violence against women and the treatment of women in prison.

 

Mary McLeod Bethune

In 1904, Mary McLeod Bethune founded the Daytona Normal and Industrial School for Negro Girls. Her school for Negro girls later merged with the Cookman Institute of Jacksonville in 1923 and is known today today as Bethune-Cookman University.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas

Marjory Stoneman Douglas lived her life as an environmental activist and an author. Douglas worked as a journalist before publishing her first book, “The Everglades: River of Grass.”  She raised awarness and help transform the Florida Everglades to a national park that is seen as a valuable environmental resource to be protected and preserved.

Zora Neale Hurston

Zora Neale Hurston, a writer often mentioned in discussions about the Harlem Renaissance is known for such works as “Their Eyes Were Watching God”  “Jonah’s Gourd Vine” and “Dust Tracks On A Road,” in which chronicles her life growing up in Eatonville, Florida. An amazing folklorist and anthropologist as shown in “Mules and Men.”

 

 Ivy J.C. Stranahan

Ivy J.C. Stranahan, a pioneer who worked for rights of women and Native Americans. While serving as the president of the state suffrage league in 1917, she lobbied in legislature for the right for women to vote. Stranahan is a Florida Women’s Hall of Fame inductee 1996.

 

Carrie Meek

Carrie Meek, the first African-American woman to be elected to the Florida Senate. In 1978 Meek won the election to the Florida state house of representatives, defeating 12 candidates. She served from 1979 to 1983, chairing the education appropriations subcommittee. From 1983 to 1993, she served in the Florida senate.