Lit Chat Interview with Lifetime Fighter for Justice, Nat Glover

Completely Booked - Official Podcast of the Jacksonville Public Library

Nat Glover was born in 1943, in segregated Jacksonville, Florida. At seventeen, he unknowingly headed into an angry white mob and the Ku Klux Klan attacking young black protestors staging a sit-in at a downtown whites-only lunch counter. Known as “Ax Handle Saturday,” this harrowing encounter with racism would commit him to a lifetime of fighting for justice.

He joined the Jacksonville Police Department in 1966 where he was named Police Officer of the Year four times, promoted to detective, rose to sergeant, and was appointed the city’s first hostage negotiator. In 1995, Duval County voters elected him the first Black sheriff in Florida since Reconstruction.

Hear more about his incredible work and his new memoir, Striving for Justice: A Black Sheriff.

Nathaniel Glover has garnered national recognition for his community policing, ban on choke holds, and de-escalation training. Then-President Bill Clinton and U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno praised his initiatives during a walk-along with Glover in Jacksonville.

He was also a mayoral candidate in 2003 and served as the 29th President of his alma mater, Edward Waters University. He was twice nominated for the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Male President of the Year. The school’s stadium is named the Nathaniel Glover Community Field and Stadium.

He received a “Great Floridian” designation in 2016 for his dedication to law enforcement, higher education, and the city of Jacksonville. He was inducted into the Florida Law Enforcement Officer’s Hall of Fame in 2021. His memoir, Striving for Justice: A Black Sheriff, was released on August 22, 2023. Book proceeds help fund scholarships for need-based students through the Florida State College at Jacksonville’s Foundation and the “Where They Will Shine Scholarship Fund”. Learn more at www.strivingforjusticebook.com.

Interviewer Keitha Nelson is an award-winning journalist with 19 years of experience in the field of broadcasting. She currently serves as the co-anchor for Good Morning Jacksonville, First Coast News, NBC12/ABC25.

She’s a true storyteller with the ability to connect with audiences. Throughout her career, Keitha has covered several major stories including Hurricanes Katrina, Matthew, and Irma as well as the Kamiyah Mobley story and Ahmaud Arbery shooting trial.

Keitha is a regular speaker and volunteer. Most recently, she’s been honored with a Ken Knight award for her coverage and positive impact within the community. Notably, she has also won an Award of Excellence in Broadcast Journalism from Women in Media. Keitha has contributed to team awards including both an Edward R. Murrow and a Peabody for Hurricane Katrina coverage and an Emmy.

She serves on the board of Jacksonville non-profit Hope at Hand, which provides art and poetry therapy to at-risk populations. Keitha is also a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.

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Check out Striving for Justice from the library! https://jkpl.ent.sirsi.net/client/en_US/default/search/results?qu=striving+for+justice+glover&te=

THE LIBRARY RECOMMENDS

• African American Life in Jacksonville by Herman Mason
• It Still Hurts, by Marshelle Berry
• Florida’s Historic African American Homes, by Jada Wright-Greene

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