Discover the hidden history of Florida’s civil rights movement with one of the state’s leading historians.

Join Dr. J. Michael Butler for a compelling examination of Florida’s role in the Civil Rights movement and the myth of “Florida exceptionalism.” While many believe Florida avoided the racial turmoil experienced across the Deep South, this presentation reveals how the state experienced many of the same struggles, protests, and challenges that defined the Black freedom movement throughout the South — and how this history continues to shape modern America today.

Presented by the Marco Island Historical Society in partnership with The Florida Humanities.

About Michael

Dr. J. Michael Butler is the Kenan Distinguished Professor of History at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida. A specialist in the Black freedom struggle, his work has appeared in leading journals, including the Journal of African American History and the Journal of Southern History. His book, Beyond Integration: The Black Freedom Struggle in Escambia County, Florida, 1960–1980, won the 2017 Florida Book Award for Nonfiction. Named a Distinguished Lecturer by the Organization of American Historians in 2024, Dr. Butler also served as a Visiting Professor at Yale University’s Gilder Lehrman Center in Fall 2025.