Justice Department to Launch Review of 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre

The Justice Department’s announcement of a review of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre has brought hope and closure to descendants of survivors who have long awaited justice for the horrific attack on the thriving Black district of Greenwood, also known as Black Wall Street. The massacre, considered one of the worst acts of violence against Black people in U.S. history, resulted in the deaths of as many as 300 Black individuals and the destruction of over 1,200 homes, businesses, schools, and churches.

Assistant U.S. Attorney General Kristen Clarke stated that while there may not be anyone living who could be prosecuted as a result of the inquiry, the agency plans to issue a public report detailing its findings by the end of the year. Descendants of survivors, including 110-year-old Viola Fletcher and 109-year-old Lessie Benningfield Randle, expressed their joy and relief at the news of the federal probe into the massacre.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court’s dismissal of a lawsuit by survivors earlier this year had dampened hopes of financial amends for the attack, but the call for a federal investigation under the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act has reignited the fight for justice. The Act, approved in 2008, has led to successful prosecutions in Civil Rights Era cases, including cases involving the Ku Klux Klan and the bombing of a church in Birmingham, Alabama.

As the DOJ continues its review of historic cases, the hope is that the investigation into the Tulsa Race Massacre will bring some form of closure and acknowledgment of the trauma endured by the survivors and descendants of those affected by this tragic event.