For this project, I decided to write a short story about the 1921 Tulsa Massacre because I wanted to spend the time learning more about it since it’s considered one of the deadliest and worst acts of racial violence in the history of the United States. I chose to write a short story giving a fictionalized account of the event because it challenged me to put myself in their shoes and understand the experiences that the Black people of Tulsa endured. Writing a story about a great tragedy such as this presents some important challenges and things I need to keep in mind. I needed to make sure that I didn’t sensationalize the events and maintained a strong sense of authenticity and respect, otherwise I would be doing a disservice to the people who …show more content…
It was precipitated by the arrest of 19-year-old Dick Rowland, who was being accused of assaulting a 17-year-old woman named Sarah Page.1 A crowd of white people formed at the courthouse jail demanding they hand him over with the intention of lynching Rowland. A group of militant Black men, with many of them being World War I veterans, arrived to try to protect Rowland but were dismissed by the sheriff. An altercation occurred when a white man tried to disarm one of the Black men which resulted in the gun firing, initiating the massacre.1 In the ensuing violence, 35 blocks of Greenwood were burned down.3 Approximately 1,470 homes were either burned to the ground or looted.1 Additionally, their local economy was devastated by the damage. Of the businesses destroyed, there were two dozen grocery stores, thirty-one restaurants, and four drugstores. There were an estimated 300 people who died.1 Hundreds of rioters were also deputized given weapons provided by the city.2 National Guardsmen also engaged in the riot.3 About 6,000 of Tulsa’s Black community were detained and temporarily relocated to internment camps.1 The city discarded the bodies in unmarked graves, and recently in 2020 a mass grave was discovered that is presumed to be from the Tulsa Massacre, though the results of the investigation haven’t been published to definitively determine that.4 The city has also
The Tulsa Race Massacre was a two day long race massacre, which took place from May 31st to June 1st 1921, that occurred in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Greenwood district during 1921 was a prosperous African American community in Tulsa that was often referred to as Black Wall Street. A young man, by the name of Dick Rowland, apparently stumbled up against a white woman in an elevator and from there false assault accusations formed against Rowland (secondary). Rowland was arrested