Senate considers making Black Wall Street a national monument

More than 100 years after the nation’s deadliest racial massacre, the Senate is considering a bipartisan bill to grant national monument status to Greenwood, Oklahoma, also known as “Black Wall Street.”

In 1921, Black Wall Street was burned to the ground by white mobs who attacked the then-prosperous, predominantly black neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The state of Oklahoma initially recorded 36 deaths following the massacre; however, a 2001 state commission indicated that the number of people killed was probably 300 people.

The bill gained bipartisan support and was introduced by Senators Cory Booker and James Lankford. Before Wednesday’s hearing, descendants of the Tulsa massacre were at the Capitol to advocate for monument status. The group, led by Tiffany Crutcher, director of the Terence Crutcher Foundation, and Reuben Gant, executive director of the John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation, met with lawmakers. Their written testimony was added to the congressional records.

The Greenwood Historic District’s Black Wall Street National Monuments Coalition said it believes the national monument designation “would help catalyze the resurgence of this economic and cultural center after the 1921 Tulsa race massacre gutted one of the most remarkable success stories America has ever known.”

“May 31, 2024 marks the 103rd anniversary of the start of a ruthless effort to wipe Black Wall Street off the map – and a state-sponsored campaign to erase it from American memory,” the group said . With one voice, we emphasize to this subcommittee that now is the time to help us preserve the rich heritage and lessons that make this community such an indelible part of our nation’s history.

Two survivors of the century-old massacre remain: Viola Fletcher, known as “Mother Fletcher,” who turned 110 this month, and Lessie Benningfield Randle, known as “Mother Randle.” She is 109 years old.

In 2021, both women, along with Mother Randle’s brother, Hughes “Uncle Red” Van Ellis, who died in October, testified before the Senate in 2021 about their memories of the incident and the aftermath of the experience while They were trying to appeal to the Senate for reparations and recognition of what happened to them.

Mother Fletcher, who was just 7 years old at the time of the massacre, told lawmakers: “I still see black men being shot, black bodies lying in the street. I still smell smoke and I see fire.”

She added: “I still see black businesses burned. I still hear planes flying overhead. I hear the screams. I lived through the massacre every day. Our country can forget this history, but I can’t. I won’t, and other survivors won’t, and neither will our descendants.

The coalition on Wednesday urged Congress to act quickly in this direction.

“Thankfully, there are still survivors of the massacre who are alive and eager to see Congress take a historic step toward unifying the Greenwood community. But we are running out of time,” the coalition said.