On May 31, 1921, a “violent white supremacist mob” erupted on the prospering Black community of Greenwood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, trashing shops, burning houses, and killing hundreds of Black people, according to President Joe Biden’s proclamation.
Biden referred to the racist mob who “raided, firebombed, and destroyed… the vibrant Black community of Greenwood” in his declaration.
“Families and children were murdered in cold blood. Homes, businesses, and churches were burned. In all, as many as 300 Black Americans were killed,” the proclamation reads. “Today, on this solemn centennial of the Tulsa Race Massacre, I call on the American people to reflect on the deep roots of racial terror in our Nation and recommit to the work of rooting out systemic racism across our country.”
The Tulsa race massacre, which occurred between May 31 and June 1, 1921, was one of the bloodiest acts of domestic terrorism in American history. About 35 blocks of a prosperous community known as Black Wall Street were destroyed by a white mob. Survivors and descendants continue to struggle for justice and accountability today.
107-year-old survivor Viola Fletcher testified before Congress earlier this month, saying, “I will never forget the ferocity of the white mob.”
“I still see Black men being shot, Black bodies lying in the street. I still smell smoke and see fire. I still see Black businesses being burned. I still hear airplanes flying overhead. I hear the screams,” she added. “I have lived through the massacre every day. Our country may forget this history but I cannot.”
In his presidential proclamation, Biden emphasized the federal government’s role in prolonging racist damage in Greenwood, stating that the neighborhood was redlined by mortgage companies and considered “dangerous” by the US government, prohibiting Black residents from obtaining home loans. Later, federal highway building wreaked havoc on the area and left it desolate.
“The Federal Government must reckon with and acknowledge the role that it has played in stripping wealth and opportunity from Black communities,” the proclamation reads, adding that the Biden-Harris administration is “committed to acknowledging the role federal policy played in Greenwood and other Black communities and addressing longstanding racial inequities.”
The president ended the proclamation with a promise to the survivors and descendants of victims of the race massacre: “We will never forget.”
