On January 3, 1937, Eleanor arrives at a packed National Conference on the Problems of the Negro and Negro Youth, determined to answer Steve Woodburn’s pressure with defiance. She joins Mary McLeod Bethune onstage, reflecting briefly on growing tensions at home that have driven her to a private refuge at Val-Kill. Mary introduces Eleanor, who unexpectedly honors Mary as the “First Lady of the Struggle,” drawing enthusiastic applause.

Eleanor delivers the keynote Steve tried to stop, urging equal education and employment for Negro youth through New Deal and private means. Some white men react with shock, one walks out, and Eleanor notes the national scrutiny via radio and press. She closes by calling for unity across color, religion, and background.

To cement their message, Eleanor and Mary enact a planned gesture: they clasp their gloved hands onstage. The audience gasps, then erupts in applause as they openly violate the taboo against interracial touching, signaling a deliberate challenge to segregation and a public assertion of partnership.

At noon, they escalate their stance by dining together at Old Ebbitt Grill. Despite the manager’s hesitation, Eleanor insists on a prominent front-window table. With Earl managing security, they await friendly photographers to capture them chatting and eating, ensuring images of interracial companionship reach the public.

As they wait, Mary shares how racism barred her from missionary work in Africa despite training at Moody Bible Institute. She reframes that loss as a calling to be a “missionary” at home, using speeches and everyday acts—like this lunch—to normalize integration. The first camera flash pops, marking the start of their carefully staged campaign to “normalize equality.”