Black Wall Street, or the historically Black neighborhood Greenwood, Oklahoma is the site of a once prosperous, thriving, Black community. It is also the site of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, a violent attack waged by white supremacists, killing hundreds of residents and leveling homes and businesses.
In this, second episode of our three-part Black History Month series, we discuss how the community rebuilt. In fact, Greenwood’s economic heyday came 20 years later, in the 1940s. Then came the 1950s-60s, when Urban Renewal projects gave the city of Tulsa federal funds to buy out Black landowners. This loss of ownership undercut Greenwood’s very existence. Now, Greenwood Okies, pulling from their history, are building Tulsa’s future, despite continued discrimination.
Guests:
Bracken Klar – Co-Executive Producer of “Focus: Black Oklahoma,” Vice-President of Tulsa’s Tri-City Collective
Carlos Moreno – member of Tulsa’s Tri-City Collective, journalist, and author of The Victory of Greenwood and A Kid’s Book About the Tulsa Race Massacre
Trey Thaxton – CEO and Founder of Goldmill Co. and Greenwood Ave.