Tulsa Race Massacre survivors demand accountability and reparations following DOJ report

Tulsa, Oklahoma - The last two living survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre have responded to a new Department of Justice (DOJ) report on the attack, vowing to continue their fight for reparations.

Tulsa Race Massacre survivors Viola Ford Fletcher (l.) and Lessie Benningfield Randle are calling for accountability and reparations following a Department of Justice report on the 1921 white-supremacist attack.
Tulsa Race Massacre survivors Viola Ford Fletcher (l.) and Lessie Benningfield Randle are calling for accountability and reparations following a Department of Justice report on the 1921 white-supremacist attack.  © Collage: IMAGO / Imagn Images

The DOJ last week released its report on the massacre following a review announced in September, three months after the Oklahoma Supreme Court dismissed survivors' historic reparations case.

The report describes the May 31-June 1, 1921, invasion of Tulsa's Greenwood District (aka Black Wall Street) as an attack "so systematic and coordinated that it transcended mere mob violence."

It states that "as many as 10,000 white Tulsans" – including law enforcement officers – participated in the killing spree, which left at least 300 people dead and 35 square blocks of the city in ruins.

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After the massacre, Black Tulsans were confined to concentration camps guarded by armed white men. Black men were charged with inciting the violence, while the FBI sought to cover up the racist nature of the crimes.

Culpable entities and individuals – including the Tulsa Police Department, Sheriff William McCullough, the National Guard, Mayor T.D. Evans, the KKK, and other city officials and business interests – have for decades evaded accountability for their actions, which continue to harm survivors and descendants to this day.

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Despite the damning findings, the DOJ claims in its report that prosecution of the responsible entities is no longer possible – something contested by survivors and their legal representatives.

"While it hasn’t been easy for us to relive the pain, we are relieved to see one of the biggest cover-ups in American history come crashing down," survivors Lessie Benningfield Randle and Viola Ford Fletcher, both 110 years old, said in a joint statement following the report's release.

"Still, after meeting with us during the probe, DOJ investigators released a report that falls heartbreakingly short. The DOJ confirms the government’s role in the slaughter of our Greenwood neighbors but refuses to hold the institutions accountable under federal law," the two women continued.

"Justice is not saying to survivors that the entities that ran us out of town, hindered our rebuilding efforts, and erased us from history are absolved of their crimes. Justice is holding guilty parties to account so that the community can heal."

Tulsa Race Massacre survivors "will not rest" until justice is secured

The once-thriving Greenwood District lies in ruins in the aftermath of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
The once-thriving Greenwood District lies in ruins in the aftermath of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.  © IMAGO / glasshouseimages

Despite the DOJ's assessment, the survivors and their legal team consider the question of accountability by no means closed.

National civil rights attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons, the survivors' lead counsel, said, "To be clear, the DOJ had every opportunity to advance justice for the Greenwood community, but did not show a willingness to rise to the occasion."

"The DOJ failed to issue any subpoenas for the documents that complicit institutions have hidden from us, and refused to address the ongoing mass graves investigation including the recent discovery of previously unknown victims of the massacre," the Justice For Greenwood founder and executive director said.

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"Furthermore, their refusal to recommend charges – or at least elevate the review into an official investigation – sends the wrong message to extremists about the consequences of committing domestic terror on American soil."

In spite of the shortcomings, Solomon-Simmons and the survivors believe the DOJ report makes it all the more clear that a debt is owed to the Greenwood community.

"Our unwavering belief in God continues to give us hope," Randle and Fletcher shared.

"To know what scripture says about restitution and repentance is to know that the DOJ report is not the end of the journey. It's an unmistakable call to action, which is already reverberating throughout Tulsa and the nation."

"The tremendous outpouring of support from the public – including growing calls for justice and reparations – tells us that more people than ever care about what happened to us in Greenwood," they said. "And more doors are opening for the harm to finally be repaired."

"At 110-years-old we are weary, but we will not rest until justice for Greenwood is secured."

Cover photo: Collage: IMAGO / Imagn Images

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