What was the Tulsa Race Massacre?
The Tulsa Race Massacre was one of the worst incidents of racial violence in U.S. history. On May 31, 1921, a group of white locals launched an attack on a thriving Black neighborhood in Tulsa, Okla. The Tulsa Race Massacre was one of the worst incidents of racial violence in U.S. history.
What was the race massacre of 1921?
On May 31, 1921, Tulsa's Greenwood District was thriving — a Black city within a city. By June 1, it was in ashes, leveled by a white supremacist mob. The Tulsa Race Massacre remains one of the worst incidents of racial terror in U.S. history.
Will our country ever forget the Tulsa massacre?
100 years ago today, a massacre of Black residents occurred in Tulsa, Oklahoma and was promptly and deliberately forgotten. Our country may forget this history, but I cannot, I will not, and other survivors do not. And our descendants do not.
What happened to Tulsa's Greenwood district?
On May 31, 1921, Tulsa, Oklahoma's Greenwood District was a thriving Black residential and business community — a city within a city. By June 1, a white mob, with the support of law enforcement, had reduced it to ashes.
What happened in the Tulsa massacre?
Tulsa Race Massacre - The Promised Land American History Tellers. Between 1838 and 1890, thousands of African Americans moved to Oklahoma, brought there as Cherokee slaves or drawn there by the promise of free land. Black pioneers established towns where African Americans could govern themselves and thrive in community together, and in time, ...
What was the name of the neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1921?
Out of this movement, the wealthiest African American community in the nation was born. By 1921, the Tulsa neighborhood of Greenwood had become such a hotspot of entrepreneurship that it became famous as “Negro Wall Street.”.
When did African Americans move to Oklahoma?
Between 1838 and 1890, thousands of African Americans moved to Oklahoma, brought there as Cherokee slaves or drawn there by the promise of free land.
What were the racial tensions in the US in the 1920s?
Racial tensions in the US in the 1920s were very high. Segregation was in full swing and helped see to it that black and white communities were kept separate. Laws commonly referred to as the Jim Crow laws had already affected much of the black community in the South, as well as the North.
Did the world know about the Tulsa race massacre?
It was decided that the world did not need to know about the Tulsa Race Massacre. Instead, it was thought that it would be better to cover the entire thing up. Documents were destroyed, including the original Tulsa Tribune article, and bodies were buried in mass graves. Soon, it was almost like it had not happened whatsoever. And all citizens knew that it was not something you spoke about in public.
Who was the author of the Tulsa massacre?
Joining us on the centennial to talk about the Tulsa Race Massacre and its legacy is Tulsa historian and prolific author and lawyer, Hannibal B. Johnson.
What followed the Greenwood massacre?
What followed the massacre was a national forgetting: no reckoning, no justice, and no accountability. Black property owners were never compensated, and neither the city nor the state committed money toward rebuilding Greenwood in the aftermath.
What was the Red Cross called after the massacre?
Really great relief in terms of, in the immediate post massacre period, health care, food, shelter, clothing, et cetera. Red Cross was called Angels of Mercy, both by people in the Black community and people in the White community.
What was the black riot in the 1920s?
In the early 1920s, Black Americans were under the siege of direct and indirect racial violence with widespread lynchings, Jim Crow laws, and race riots across the country.
How many race riots were there in 1919?
In 1919, just two years prior to the Tulsa outbreak, there are more than two dozen so-called race riots.
What happened to the white mob in Frisco?
The large White mob spilled over the Frisco tracks into the Greenwood community, shooting and looting and burning, destroying everything in sight, murdering people. Many of the people in the mob, the White mob, were deputized by local law enforcement officers.
When did the Tulsa race massacre happen?
Blindspot: Tulsa Burning On May 31, 1921, Tulsa's Greenwood District was thriving — a Black city within a city. By June 1, it was in ashes, leveled by a white supremacist mob. The Tulsa Race Massacre remains one of the worst incidents of racial terror in U.S. history.
When did the Tulsa shooting happen?
On May 31, 1921, Tulsa, Oklahoma's Greenwood District was a thriving Black residential and business community — a city within a city. By June 1, a white mob, with the support of law enforcement, had reduced it to ashes. And yet the truth about the attack remained a secret to many for nearly a century.Chief Egunwale Amusan grew up in Tulsa — his ...
When did Tulsa burn?
Introducing Blindspot: Tulsa Burning. May 21, 2021 •. On May 31, 1921, the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma was a thriving city within a city — a symbol of pride, success and wealth. The next morning, it was ashes. What happened remained a secret for almost a century.
What happened in Tulsa in 1921?
On May 31, 1921, Tulsa's Greenwood District was thriving — a Black city within a city. By June 1, it was in ashes, leveled by a white supremacist mob. The Tulsa Race Massacre remains one of the worst incidents of racial terror in U.S. history. In six episodes, Blindspot: Tulsa Burning tells the story of a thriving neighborhood ...
How many people were killed in the Greenwood massacre?
Estimates vary, but reports say the marauders killed 100 to 300 people; and they left thousands homeless, faced with the daunting task of rebuilding.
How many people were lynched in the Red Summer of 1919?
After the war, white mobs plundered and burned Black neighborhoods throughout the country. And during the "Red Summer" of 1919, whites lynched more than 80 people, including Black veterans. Groups like the African Blood Brotherhood responded by urging people to defend themselves — with force, if necessary.
Who was the woman who died in the Greenwood massacre?
Mabel Little—who ran a beauty salon in Greenwood—also lost everything during the attack. In the years afterward, she and her husband Pressley built a modest three-bedroom house and adopted 11 children. Pressley died in 1927 from pneumonia; Mabel blamed the massacre for his declining health.
What is the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa race massacre?
On the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre, a look back at one of the worst incidents of racial violence in American history— as the search for mass graves of the victims continues.
Who wrote the race card for the Tulsa massacre?
You can also find the Race Card, a project from journalist Michele Norris, to capture people’s thoughts on race in just six words.
What happened in Tulsa in 1921?
A Reckoning in Tulsa A century ago, Tulsa’s Greenwood neighborhood was a vibrant Black community. One spring night in 1921 changed all that: a white mob rioted, murdering as many as 300 Black residents and destroying their family homes and thriving businesses. Archaeologists are working to uncover one of the worst—and virtually unknown—incidents ...
What is the Greenwood district in Tulsa?
BRIGGS: Because of Oklahoma’s Jim Crow and residential segregation laws, nearly all of Tulsa’s African American residents settled in a 35-square-block area of the city known as the Greenwood district.
Did Oklahoma schools teach the history of the Tulsa massacre?
BRIGGS: As a Tulsa native, Scott recalls that schools in Oklahoma also didn’t teach the history. ELLSWORTH: In 1969 we had a textbook. There was a very brief write-up about the massacre.
Racial Tensions
- Racial tensions in the US in the 1920s were very high. Segregation was in full swing and helped see to it that black and white communities were kept separate. Laws commonly referred to as the Jim Crow laws had already affected much of the black community in the South, as well as the North. These laws were a culmination of efforts to control the black population. Quite a lot of th…
Greenwood
- The Greenwood District of Tulsa was a northern part of the city that’s population was predominantly black. The white citizens of Tulsa even referred to Greenwood as “Little Africa”. The thing about Greenwood, however, is that it was a very proud neighbourhood. The community there was dedicated to each other, and dedicated to bettering the neighbourhood. Some Greenwood c…
Dick Rowland
- Even with all of this wealth, Greenwood wasn’t protected from persecution. That couldn’t be more evident than one of the main people in this story, Dick Rowland. Rowland was a shoe-shiner in the white part of Tulsa. Throughout his workday, he would frequently enter the Drexel building to use their “coloured” toilets. The operator of this elevator, Sarah Page, was a young white woman. Su…
Courthouse
- Outside the courthouse, hundreds of whites began gathering demanding that the sheriff turns over Rowland to the mob. Luckily for Rowland, the current county sheriff, Sheriff McCullough, refused because it was his opinion that the matter should be settled in court, not with mob violence. I say it’s lucky for Rowland because the previous sheriff did let a mob take a prisoner t…
The Massacre
- Once the first shot was fired, albeit accidentally, an enormous battle began. All of the whites began to fire on any black Tulsan they saw. Anyone left on the white side of Tulsa was fair game for the mob. Of the blacks killed on the white side of Tulsa was a young, skinny man who goes unnamed in all sources. He was shot by a barrage of bullets but...
Aftermath
- It was decided that the world did not need to know about the Tulsa Race Massacre. Instead, it was thought that it would be better to cover the entire thing up. Documents were destroyed, including the original Tulsa Tribunearticle, and bodies were buried in mass graves. Soon, it was almost like it had not happened whatsoever. And all citizens knew that it was not something you spoke abo…