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DESTRUCTION and DEATH

Page Updated Tuesday, July 26, 2005

About 1200 people gathered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on June 1, 1996, to mark the 75th anniversary of one of the worst racially motivated riots in United States history. In 1921, historians say, a misunderstanding inflated by an incendiary newspaper editorial triggered a riot that killed scores of people and destroyed more than a thousand homes and businesses in a bustling black community in Tulsa called Greenwood. A 12-hour gun battle raged across town on the night of May 31, 1921, and fires that followed the battle leveled more than 35 square blocks.

What happened in Tulsa that day some 78 years ago remains unwavering evidence of the hatred that lives in the hearts of white Americans for minorities. In 1921 times were hard in Oklahoma, yet the commerce of "Black Wallstreet" remained vibrant, and robust. There were theatres, restaurants, hotels, and rows upon rows of well constructed homes owned by blacks. Ironically this progress was due to racism. Blacks, natives, and Jews were not permitted to shop in downtown Tulsa, but what the ignorant racist did not consider was that the natives lived on land rich with oil, and the Jews had enough lawyers in their community to insure that leasing rights were maintained, and blacks had the stores that could provide one with all they could afford to buy.

However, after the riot, 35 square blocks of commerce was reduced to ashes. Hundreds of men, women, and children were murdered; many of them buried in a common, unmarked, graves. The attack against the people of the Greenwood section of Tulsa came from the air when private planes dropped bombs upon the homes of the helpless, and machine guns were used to mow down those thought less than human.

The riot was triggered by an incident in an elevator in a downtown building. A young black man, Dick Rowland, entered an elevator to reach the bathrooms designated for blacks. Rowland apparently stumbled into the young white female elevator operator, Sara Page, and startled her. She screamed and he ran. The police arrested him for attacking the girl, and the now-defunct Tulsa Tribune newspaper ran a story on the front page that indicated the alleged assault was an attempted rape, noting that angry whites were gathering outside the jail. The newspaper also ran an editorial suggesting a lynching, with the headline "Nab Negro for Attacking Girl in Elevator."

At least 200 black men got their guns and went to the jail, where the sheriff convinced them that he could protect the young man. They went outside and were greeted by a mob of at least 2000 white men, some armed with guns. After a standoff, one of the white men demanded that a black man surrender his gun and tried to take it. Shots were fired, and at least six people died in the initial exchange. The gun battle raged from street to street across town to Greenwood (the black section of Tulsa). Whites looted sporting goods stores for guns and burned the buildings to cover their crimes. Word reached black families in Greenwood to get out because mobs with torches were coming. Men in private airplanes reportedly flew over the neighborhood, dropping sticks of dynamite onto homes and businesses.

Brave souls of murder and destruction 

By the next day, Greenwood was smoking rubble. The elevator operator refused to press charges in the incident that started it all, and the sheriff released Rowland. The official death toll was 36—26 blacks and 10 whites—but city newspapers estimated the toll was as high as 250. The Red Cross estimated as many as 300 deaths. However, these estimates do not allow for those buried in common graves. There is no dispute that more than 4000 blacks were left homeless. Thousands of black men were rounded up by the National Guard and temporarily held in internment camps, supposedly for their own protection. Think about that when you watch the film, The Siege, starring Denzel Washington.

All in the past? Don't believe it. Tulsa can happen again, and again. The hatred that existed then remains with us as we step into the 21st Century. Thomas Jefferson may be one hundred percent correct in his belief that black and white men have far too much history between them to ever be able to live as equals.

The greatest shame of Tulsa may have occurred after the so called riot. Blacks deemed "good" were issued green badges that they had to wear on their outer garments whenever in white areas. The badges signified that the wearer had a job that required them to be in the white areas of business and residence. Any black caught without a green badge was immediately jailed. It is no wonder that many blacks fled Tulsa never to return.

To learn more about the Tulsa Riots then follow this link.

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