Youth library named after ‘beloved community icon’
The Bermuda Youth Library will be renamed to honour “a true hero of our island” who led efforts to organise the 1959 Theatre Boycott.
The library will now be known as the Florenz Webbe Maxwell Youth Library after the former head of the government library system’s youth wing. An official naming ceremony will take place at the facility on July 21.
Diallo Rabain, the Minister of the Cabinet Office and Digital Innovation, said the renaming is a tribute to “a woman whose courage, service and devotion to Bermuda’s youth have helped shape our island for the better”.
He said: “Many in Bermuda are familiar with Ms Florenz Webbe Maxwell’s remarkable story. She is a retired librarian, an award-winning author and a true hero of our island.
“At a very young age, she was part of a group of 18 young people known as the Progressive Group, which organised the 1959 Theatre Boycott — a peaceful protest that led to the end of segregation in our movie theatres.
“That watershed moment sparked the dismantling of racial segregation in other areas of Bermudian life, from hotels and restaurants to schools.
“Ms Maxwell’s courage in 1959 demonstrated that one young person, armed with conviction and determination, can transform an entire community.”
The idea to honour Ms Maxwell started with a grassroots suggestion by respected former educator, Shirley Pearman. Joanne Brangman, the director of libraries and archives, immediately backed the idea.
Mr Rabain said when he told Ms Maxwell about the renaming, she was “humble and deeply moved”, mentioning how much the youth library meant to her.
He added: “We are not simply renaming a building, we are celebrating a beloved community icon and showing her what she means to us.”
Ms Maxwell has devoted herself to empowering young people through knowledge.
In 1969, she joined the Bermuda Library Service when it was almost impossible for a Black Bermudian woman to become a librarian as the system continued to be segregated.
She worked as a messenger and book assistant, and by 1974, she had worked her way up to become the head of the youth library.
Mr Rabain said: “Ms Maxwell devoted nearly 30 years to transforming the youth library into a magical space for children …
“She also made the library a centre of cultural pride, with Al Seymour Jr teaching children to make Bermuda kites every Easter and sharing our island’s traditions.
“Under her guidance, the youth library was more than a library — it became a lively community hub for learning, creativity and Bermudian culture.”
After Ms Maxwell retired in the late 1990s, she focused on documenting Bermuda’s heritage.
In 2008, she published The Spirit Baby and Other Bermudian Folktales, preserving local legends, and in 2017, she realised a lifelong dream by publishing her first novel, Girlcott.
Drawing on her own experiences during the Theatre Boycott, Girlcott follows a teenage Bermudian girl coming of age amid segregation and social change.
Girlcott secured second place in the 2016 Burt Award for Caribbean Literature and was highlighted in Oprah Winfrey’s O Magazine as a “must-read”.
Last year, the novel was chosen for a One Island, One Book reading initiative at The Berkeley Institute, uniting students and the community in learning from shared history.
Ms Maxwell thanked Ingrid Applewhaite, an instructional team leader of English at The Berkeley Institute, as well as Cheryl-Ann Griffin, Steve Smith, and Sharon Dublin, who helped to make the literary initiative a success.
Mr Rabain quoted Ms Maxwell when she said “discovering your gift and pursuing it is the key to fulfilment”.
He added: “She lived by those words. Ms Maxwell discovered her gift for education and storytelling, and she pursued it with passion.
“In doing so, she became a guardian of our culture — a tradition-bearer who passed on the light of knowledge and heritage to the next generation.
“By naming the youth library after Florenz Webbe Maxwell, we ensure her legacy endures at the very heart of our community. Every child who enters that library will see her name and become curious to learn about her.
“They will discover a woman who courageously stood up against injustice and then dedicated her life to opening doors of knowledge for all children.
“They will see that one person’s bravery and kindness can truly transform their world.
“This is the lesson we are immortalising, that the actions of a single individual can inspire and uplift many others across generations.”
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