Saturday, May 27th 2023, 6:25 pm
The Black Wall Street Legacy Fest is wrapping up the 2nd of its six days in the Greenwood District.
The festival is to remember the victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre while also celebrating Historic Greenwood.
More than 30 local businesses are set up at the Legacy Fest and people who are attending say it's a testament of how the district is recovering from the darkest day in Tulsa's history.
Live music, horseback riding, and mental health screenings are just a few activities to enjoy at the Black Wall Street Legacy Festival.
The event is free and helps support local businesses of North Tulsa.
"Really we want to see everyone. we want to see the whole Tulsa community with a special emphasis of course on descendants and survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre," Terence Crutcher Foundation's Jayla Meeks said.
Meeks says the festival is about spreading truth, inspiring hope, and extending tradition to the youth.
"For our community, we know that since 1921 there's been a spirit of resilience in Greenwood and we want to make sure that spirit is not only honored but remembered and we keep moving in the same spirit of resilience," Meeks said.
Rodney Gaines is a member of Vernon AME Church.
He says he looks forward to the opportunity to help show support at the festival each year.
"It's always a pleasure each and every time Tulsa comes out to support Greenwood cause this is the heart of North Tulsa," Gaines said.
Gaines says without the support, Greenwood just wouldn't be the same.
"So, the people who come out; Greenwood is the heart. They are the veins and if they don't come out and support, where does the blood flow to," Gaines asked.
He says he hopes everyone can walk away from the festival with this lesson.
"Sometimes when people are at their worst, or when they've been brought down to their lowest, you can't do nothing but rise to the top," Gaines said. "This is a testimony that we have risen to the top. We are here to survive. We're here to live and we're living. We're doing our thing and nothing can stop us."
The festival continues through Thursday.
August 21st, 2024
August 20th, 2024
September 6th, 2024
September 6th, 2024
September 6th, 2024