Sarasota wants to be the home of future Florida Black History Museum

Share
Graphic presented to committee from Sarasota// Credit: Visit Sarasota County, 2023

Listen:

State officials are looking at locations for a future Florida Museum of Black History, and Sarasota County is gunning for the spot.

Sarasota was among a handful of areas around Florida, including St. Petersburg and St Johns County, pitching their location to the Florida Museum of Black History Task Force.

“To the civil rights movement and beyond, Sarasota’s African-American community has played a vital role in shaping the city we see today.”

Shantel Norman is with Visit Sarasota County. She pitched Sarasota to a nine-member task force, appointed by Governor Ron Desantis, to provide recommendations for a future Florida Museum of Black History.

She said the city has a deep history  with the struggle for beach integration during the civil rights era

“Sarasota is on the US Civil Rights trail, right up there with iconic sites, such as the Edmond Pettus bridge, and Ebeneezer Baptist Church. Sarasota is the southernmost site on the trail. Why? Because of our beach desegregation story.”

Locations will be evaluated according to factors including historical significance and demographics.

The next committee meeting is January 12th.

You may also like

Tropical Storm Rafael forms, watches issued for parts of Florida

Tropical Storm Rafael could reach category two hurricane status just...

Talking Animals: veteran advocate delivers anatomy of a victorious, major animal rights campaign

Jodie Wiederkehr, Executive Director of Chicago Alliance for Animals ...

Fascist violence and the truth laid bare

Commemorative in Ocoee, FL marking racist election day violence in...

The 2024 Veganic Summit with Meg Kelly

Join Anni and Tanja to discuss organic gardening, farming and...

Ways to listen

WMNF is listener-supported. That means we don't advertise like a commercial station, and we're not part of a university.

Ways to support

WMNF volunteers have fun providing a variety of needed services to keep your community radio station alive and kickin'.

Follow us on Instagram

The Morning Show Tuesday
Player position: