UNF hosts New Florida Majority leader for Women’s History Month Luncheon
The University of North Florida Women’s Center will present the annual Women’s History Month Luncheon with a keynote speech delivered by Andrea Mercado, the executive director of New Florida Majority and the New Florida Majority Education Fund, from noon to 2 p.m. Wednesday, March 4, in the John A. Delaney Student Union Ballroom, Room 3703.
This year’s luncheon will focus on the importance of voting, letting underrepresented voices be heard and voter rights. Mercado will discuss how the New Florida Majority works to build independent political power and achieve racial, economic and climate justice for marginalized communities.
The daughter of immigrants from South America, Mercado has been organizing in communities of color and immigrant communities for over a decade. Mercado is a co-founder of the National Domestic Workers Alliance where she oversaw campaigns that won Domestic Worker Bill of Rights legislation in seven states, won national overtime protections for 2 million home care workers and directed the “We Belong Together” campaign to highlight the impact of immigration policy on women and girls.
Mercado, a south Florida resident, was the Political Director and Lead Organizer at Mujeres Unidas y Activas, a grassroots Latina immigrant women’s organization in the San Francisco Bay Area. Previously, she lived and worked in Bahia, Brazil with Ipeterras, a sustainable agriculture project organizing against free trade agreements, and as a global justice organizer for the Miami Workers Center.
General admission tickets cost $25; tables for eight guests including table signage, preferential seating and recognition during the program are available for $250; student can pick up a free ticket at the UNF Box Office by presenting a valid Osprey 1Card. Tickets can be purchased via the website and at the UNF Box Office, located at Roy Lassiter Hall, Building 8, Room 1100.
For event information, contact Jess Harris, Women’s Center specialist, at
A celebration of Women's History Month, this annual luncheon provides a vehicle to celebrate women, their accomplishments and their contributions to society. The luncheon humbly began as a potluck event for faculty, staff and students at the University over thirty years ago but has since evolved into one of the premiere Women's History Month events in Jacksonville. Community partners, faculty, staff and students come together each spring to hear from globally-recognized speakers, who serve as pioneers in advancing women across the world. The Susan B. Anthony Award and the Women's History Month Scholarship are awarded each year during this hallmark event.