The First Ladies

Eleanor notices how the other women, heads of respected organizations to uplift all women, are isolating Mary because she’s Black. Eleanor wants to interact with Mary, but as the lunch event begins, the other women stop her. They tell her it’s unacceptable to engage with Mary, no matter how respected she may be. Eleanor defends Mary with hot indignation and leaves her guests to sit with Mary at her table.

Eleanor apologizes for the other women’s disrespect, but Mary says Eleanor shouldn’t apologize for others’ sin; Mary is unfazed because she experiences such treatment often. Mary tells her that despite their good intentions or high standing, many people don’t want to “break bread with colored people” (8). Eleanor and Mary are impressed by each other and each other’s values and decide they have much to discuss.

When Eleanor admits she’s never experienced the blatant racism of the women today, Mary responds that she learned a lesson today. When she asks why Eleanor invited her, Eleanor perks up. She wanted to learn more about Mary’s work in education. Mary is president of Bethune-Cookman (Eleanor confirms Mary started the school with just two dollars), and they both agree women should be well-educated and achieve ambitious goals beyond domestic roles. Eleanor recently started at Todhunter, an all-girls’ school.

They get to know each other and talk about Mary’s grandchildren and Eleanor’s five children. They learn they both love a Black singer named Roland Hayes though they missed his concert. Eleanor says they’ll set a date together to see Roland sing. Mary is shocked because Hayes sings at Black-only venues, but she agrees.

Eleanor and Mary continue discussing education when Sara, Eleanor’s mother-in-law, sits with them. Eleanor remembers how Sara, though fickle and very involved in her life, was supportive of her and her pursuits when it mattered most. Sara comforted her after Franklin broke Eleanor’s heart years prior by having an affair with Lucy Mercer, Eleanor’s social secretary and friend. Though Sara was empathetic to Eleanor’s idea of divorce and would have taken care of her and the grandchildren, she convinced Eleanor to stay married in name alone so she could pursue her goals for women’s rights—as long as she stood by Franklin for his political goals.

As they talk, Sara is interrupted by another guest, who disapproves of Mary. When Eleanor asks about Bethune-Cookman, Mary explains she started her original school for girls by selling sweet potato pies, then finding the land and generous donors, including the son of James Gamble, one of the founders of Procter & Gamble. Another donor is Thomas H. White, the owner of White Sewing Machine Company—and the chief competitor of the Singer Manufacturing Company. When donors saw the conditions the girls learned in, including a shack with a dirt floor and one old sewing machine for dressmaking, they invested. Eleanor is impressed with Mary’s fundraising strategy and says she doesn’t have Mary’s “moxie.” Mary jokes about their most significant difference; she’s a Republican, and Eleanor is a Democrat.

In 1928 in Daytona Beach, Florida, Mary attends a lavish party at the Gamble Estate with her son, Albert. Mr. Gamble greets her in the ballroom and toasts her as the guest of honor; it’s a party to celebrate their 20-year partnership, which changed her life and hundreds of her students’ lives.

After she meets inventor Thomas Edison and chats with the abolitionist mayor, Mary takes the spotlight. Mr. Gamble makes a toast to her and her work supporting underprivileged girls’ education. He explains that Mary sold pies and chatted with him about the school, asking for an investment. When Mr. Gamble saw the school grounds, he found only a hut and Mary, who was teaching on land that used to be a garbage dump. He and others (such as John Rockefeller) donated over the years. Twenty years later, the school has a thriving campus that includes a hospital that treats Black patients and trains Black nurses. Albert is proud of his mom, and Mary is touched and full of gratitude at the toast.

Meanwhile, in Hyde Park, New York, 1928, Eleanor spends time at Val-Kill Cottage with her youngest two sons, Franklin Jr. and John, and best friends Marion Dickerman and Nan (Nancy) Cook. Eleanor reflects on how there is no pretense at the cottage, unlike most other places in New York, and how happy she is to have Marion and Nan, whom she met in 1922 at the Democratic Women’s fundraiser. Marion runs the Todhunter School, and Nan is a secretary for the Democratic Party. When they met, the women connected, sharing projects and friendship ever since, giving Eleanor purpose and ending her crying spells after Franklin’s infidelity in 1918. Franklin constructed the Val-Kill Cottage as a gift for her, and, she views, as an apology for his affair.

Her sons, Franklin Jr. and John, go back to the main house for a formal dinner with Sara. When the boys leave, Marion and Nan sit closer and hold hands; they’re in a “Boston marriage” (32), but they are discreet in public. They discuss Democratic Party news since Franklin is still active but more focused on learning to walk again due to having contracted polio in 1921. Marion hasn’t heard rumbles about Franklin, so Eleanor feels relief. After years as a politician’s wife, she doesn’t want to enter that domain again; instead, she wants to continue her work with Marion and Nan on the causes they cherish.

In 1928 in Daytona Beach, Florida, Mary walks along the streets. She notes that, due to her hard work at city council meetings, some Black businesses have popped up in the white section. Her son, Albert, opened the first business, which was called the Tea Shop. Then her friend Hattie opened a diner. Mary is pleased with the progress. She enters Miss Esther’s Fancy Fashions. Miss Esther has been helping dress Mary for years, and now she’s looking for clothes for the upcoming presidential campaign. She’s busy and involved in so many things—from the NAACP to her school to campaigning for Herbert Hoover.

In the shop, she’s approached by Mrs. Wallace, whose husband is on the city council. She describes how she and her husband attended one of Mary’s community events and heard Langston Hughes speak—but she says the experience was “different.” Mary can tell Mrs. Wallace means she’s never been to an event where seating is not segregated and everyone is treated equally. When Mrs. Wallace calls her “Mary,” she politely insists that she prefers “Mrs. Bethune.” Mrs. Wallace, surprised and taken aback, leaves the store. Mary notes that the woman introduced herself as “Mrs. Wallace.” Mary vowed long ago to demand that white people reciprocate respect by using her courtesy titles “Miss” or “Mrs.” because her parents, who were enslaved on a plantation, never received that respect.

Esther supports her response to Mrs. Wallace and then helps her find business clothes. Albert Jr., her grandson, runs inside from the nanny to hurry Mary along so they can go to the diner. She loves helping raise her grandson.

In New York, Eleanor arrives late for dinner with her two youngest sons, Franklin, Sara, Nan, and Marion. She’s busy working all hours on Governor Al Smith’s presidential campaign, plus teaching at Todhunter. Eleanor loves the work since this is the first presidential election women have the right to vote, and she’s coordinating all female voting across the states.

The family discusses the boys’ summer plans, including their usual trip to an island off Canada, where they sail and enjoy the scenery. Their dinner is interrupted by an unexpected phone call for Franklin from Governor Smith. Eleanor saw Smith earlier that day, and neither she nor Nan has insight as to why he is calling. Sara asks if they know what’s going on.

Franklin returns after the call; Smith asked him to give a speech nominating him for president at the Democratic National Convention. Franklin accepted, stating it’s just a speech, but Eleanor knows Smith wants Franklin to take his place as governor of New York if he wins the presidency. Eleanor and Sara worry Franklin isn’t ready, considering his paralysis, but no one speaks these thoughts aloud.

Back in Florida, Mary, campaigning for the Republican party, is dedicated to getting more Black voters. She enters the campaign office to find many friends, students, and family. They listen to announcements on the radio about winners, but their Republican candidate loses the Florida governor’s race. Her grandson, Albert Jr., is with her, and tells her not to worry because Herbert Hoover will still win.

The governor of New York is announced next, and she thinks of Eleanor Roosevelt; they’ve exchanged letters and chatted at a few events. Mary doesn’t know how Eleanor will feel if her husband wins, but she believes that Eleanor can do many good things for education and women as a governor’s wife. Franklin wins the election for New York’s governor; next, the announcer declares Herbert Hoover has won the presidency, and everyone cheers.

On the way home, when Mary asks her son, Albert, about his business, he gets upset. His business is failing (and it’s not the first one to fail), so he’s in a sour mood. At home, he takes Albert Jr. upstairs without more discussion. Mary prays for help with her family.

In Albany, New York, Eleanor and her family celebrate Franklin’s electoral win. She thinks back on how Al Smith encouraged her to facilitate a phone call with Franklin the last day they were able to nominate him. If only she refused to put their call through, they wouldn’t be here today, having what she considered a “bittersweet” victory. She remembers that when her uncle, Theodore Roosevelt, became president, Aunt Edith had little privacy or freedom. However, then Eleanor thinks maybe she’s misjudging the opportunity and that they might both be able to accomplish their goals if Franklin were governor. She also wonders how her friend Mary is doing today since Herbert Hoover won.

After being lost in her reveries, she accepts congratulations. A bold woman named Mrs. Broadstreet approaches her, welcoming her to the executive mansion. Her security man escorts her away; though Eleanor said the woman was harmless, she appreciates the security. She looks down at Franklin, who is hiding his fatigue from having been up and walking earlier with her support, leg braces, and a cane.