The First Ladies

In 1930 in Washington, DC, Eleanor and Franklin arrive late to President Hoover’s state dinner so no one will witness Franklin’s slow progress. He wears iron braces on his legs and leans on a cane on one side and on Eleanor’s arm on the other side.

As they wait in line with the other governors and their spouses for President Hoover to arrive, Eleanor reminisces about Uncle Teddy and the times she spent with him in this same White House room. After her parents died (her mother of diphtheria and her father of alcoholism), Uncle Teddy acted as guardian for her and her brother. She recalls how enigmatic, animated, and steadfast Uncle Teddy was, until his son Quentin, one of the first fighter pilots, was fatally shot down by Germans during combat over France in World War I. She also remembers dancing with Franklin at a ball hosted by Teddy. It was just before their wedding, where Teddy had walked her down the aisle and given her away.

Eleanor shakes off her memories and helps Franklin stand for more than 20 minutes. An aide asks if he needs a chair, but Franklin and Eleanor decline, trained to present him as healthy and strong. After 30 minutes of sweating with strain, Eleanor is livid. She believes President Hoover is arriving late purposely to torture Franklin since he knows Franklin will run for the presidency next. Eleanor considers the pros and cons of each political party, wondering if Mary Bethune still would approve of Hoover if she knew how poorly he was treating Franklin by taking advantage of his polio.

In 1930 in Washington, DC, Mary stays at a prestigious hotel once not open to Black people. She thinks of how President Hoover and the other politicians listened to her pleas about helping the poor Black people of America, especially children, but didn’t act. She doubts they’ll do anything to help.

Mary reads some national newspapers, including an article about a group of women in Texas protesting lynchings. She remembers being a little girl at a local fair when a white man harassed Mr. Lewis, her father’s best friend. When Lewis hit a match out of the white man’s hands, a crowd attacked him. Her dad picked Mary up and hurried them home. That night, her parents and Grandma Sophie talked about how poor Lewis was likely already swinging from a tree. Overcome with guilt, her father cried, but the women told him he had no choice but to run or he and Mary could have been lynched too.

Mary tears up while reading about present-day lynchings. She knows he must discuss this tragedy with Eleanor, someone she feels could make a difference.

Soon after, Eleanor meets Mary at an upscale hotel restaurant for tea in DC. When the doorman says the tearoom is segregated, Eleanor squares her shoulders and requests to speak to the manager. Drawing on her position as the governor’s wife, she confronts the manager and calls Mary her friend. He seats them at a table. Mary appreciates the lovely surroundings and does not want Eleanor to waste time apologizing for others.

After pleasantries, Mary brings up the recent lynchings, which Eleanor didn’t know about and feels aghast over. Mary helps Eleanor overcome her ignorance and stokes her determination to help Black people. She states remaining silent when one knows of such horrors is as immoral as the violent act; staying silent signals agreement. Eleanor, who wants to help but doesn’t know where to start, reaches out and grasps Mary’s hand. In this day and time, Black and white people are never supposed to touch, so Mary says she’s already making progress.

As Mary packs her suitcase after tea, she considers if she can work with Eleanor, given they have many of the same goals, such as securing equal rights for all and educating every child. She doubtfully considers her past interactions with Democrats; a few years ago, the Ku Klux Klan marched on her campus. Her school stood armed to fight, but they sang as the KKK marched with their hateful signs. The KKK was notoriously composed of Democrats, but despite her past, Mary thinks Eleanor is different. She prays she may be able to put aside her politics and trust Eleanor.

In 1932 in Albany, New York, Eleanor discusses Franklin’s potential run for the presidency with Louis Howe, his closest adviser. Over the years, Louis has been a stalwart support to Franklin and his family. Louis even tended to Franklin from the day he was diagnosed with polio onward. He ran Franklin’s political campaigns, read to him, and performed medical tasks. Now, Louis and Franklin strategize about which states he can win if he decides to run for the presidency.

When Louis brings up Black voters, Eleanor perks up. Louis has a proposition from Mr. Robert Vann, who runs the Pittsburgh Courier and would back Franklin in exchange for including Black units in the military and a political appointment for himself. Though they’re not as romantically close since Franklin’s infidelity, Franklin has always trusted Eleanor’s opinion. She says his job programs and other changes in New York could dramatically help Black people too, but he doesn’t need Mr. Vann. Instead, Eleanor insists she could perhaps persuade the most powerful, revered, and inspirational symbol of Black citizens’ struggles, Mary Bethune, to join their cause.

In New York City in 1932, Mary meets Eleanor at her favorite Italian restaurant that welcomes Black people. They enjoy their conversation and laugh together, so Mary thinks they’ve grown close enough through intimate letters and jokes to address each other by their first names. She allows Eleanor to be the first white person to call her Mary.

Soon after, Eleanor launches into a speech about how Franklin can help Black people, how he, with unflinching loyalty, will follow Mary’s advice should she campaign for him. Eleanor describes the programs he’ll establish and outlines her plan for Mary to meet Franklin and join their campaign. As her friend talks, Mary withdraws in frustration, feeling a wall form between them. She observes that Eleanor is caught up in her ideas, rather than noticing Mary’s reaction. She pushes her plate aside to tell Eleanor why she’s upset.

Eleanor apologizes profusely, stating she can see she’s offended her. Mary asks if Eleanor understands why she’s upset. Eleanor believes Mary’s upset because she asked too much of her to join their campaign, but Mary explains the real reasons: Eleanor acted presumptuously; she assumed Mary would agree and oblige Eleanor’s wishes simply because she asked. However, to this point, the two had never broached politics. Eleanor simply assumed that Mary was dissatisfied with the Republican party, that Mary would follow her command just because she asked, and that Eleanor herself knew what was best for Black people, rather than asking Black people themselves.

Eleanor is mortified over her mistakes and pleads with Mary to forgive her. She wants to move on, but Mary insists they discuss their conflict, that they must learn from the past to move forward, or always feel a barrier to their friendship. Eleanor agrees to learn from Mary and repair the situation.

In DC, Mary meets a friend, Mary Church Terrell, for a meal. They discuss the political climate and troubles of Black Americans and others who can barely afford to feed their families in the hard times after the stock market crash. Although they don’t think blaming Hoover for the economic crisis is fair, they need more assistance. Mary Terrell wants to gain more votes too and mentions how Mr. Vann is working with the “other” side of Democrats. At the mention of the Roosevelts, Mary weighs talking about Eleanor. Since it relates to their situation, she opens up to her friend about how Eleanor tried to recruit her too.

Mary Terrell is shocked at Eleanor’s presumptuousness. Even though she’s Eleanor’s close and loyal friend, Mary agrees—but she also defends Eleanor as truly good and wanting to help but getting caught up in the savior mentality. Mary Terrell tells her that Eleanor must learn that Mary isn’t a follower but a leader; Eleanor and Mary need to “lead together, or not at all” (107).

In Sioux City, Iowa, in 1932, Eleanor is in the train car with Franklin, who is touring American cities for his campaign. She writes a letter to Mary, but she keeps reconsidering addressing it to her by first name, given their last conversation. Though they repaired their conflict, Eleanor wants to be cautious.

Franklin asks for her help with his speech. Despite thinking back to their original romance and knowing their love was lost when Franklin cheated, Eleanor is grateful he has maintained his ideals, and she truly believes he is the best person to lead the country during the present economic crisis—otherwise, she wouldn’t be here. Still, she feels she can’t engage in her own goals when she’s busy being a politician’s wife. She considers confiding in Mary about her troubles, but she can’t after asking her to join Franklin’s campaign. Maybe she could tell Lorena Hickok, a young reporter she’s grown very close to. Eleanor knows, though, she can’t be that frank about her feelings with a reporter.

As they approach Iowa for the speech, she readies Franklin with his braces. Due to smart maneuvering by their publicist, photographers have agreed not to photograph him in his leg braces or wheelchair. He’s only to be photographed standing at a podium or in his car, and never while walking. As they head toward the podium, Eleanor hopes Franklin means it when he says he wants to help every man, woman, and child, including Mary and other Black Americans.