Tulsa City Council Unanimously Approves Race Massacre Resolution

The Tulsa City Council unanimously approved a resolution related to the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre during its meeting on Wednesday.

The resolution asks the council to recognize the findings of the "1921 Tulsa Race Riot Commission Report" as it was then known from 2001.

“This has been something that Tulsa should have done a long time ago,” Council Chair Vanessa Hall-Harper said. “Opportunity has been knocking on Tulsa’s door to do two things: to right history and to write history. I’m glad that Tulsa took this small step at both. There is more to do and more to come. This is just the beginning.” 

The resolution states that the members of the Tulsa City Council: 

A. Acknowledge, apologize, and commit to making tangible amends for the racially motivated acts of violence perpetrated against Black Tulsans in Greenwood in 1921; and

B. Apologize not only for those who perpetrated the Massacre but any enforcement of subsequent segregation, discriminatory practices and programs that led to inequities and commit to making tangible amends for policies and practices that have harmed or destroyed communities in North Tulsa; and

C. Will establish, by joint resolution of the Mayor and City Council, within the next six months a community-led process to evaluate the recommendations for reconciliation made in the Commission report, and other reports and efforts, and create short- and long-term recommendations to make significant progress toward restoring economic mobility, prosperity, and generational wealth for the 1921 Race Massacre survivors, their descendants, and residents of North Tulsa; and

D. Support the mission and work of the Mayor’s Office of Resilience and Equity (MORE), the Greater Tulsa African American Affairs Commission (GTAAAC), the Tulsa Authority for Economic Opportunity (TAEO), and their supporting partners and will utilize their talents when forming policy and programs to establish the creation of generational wealth and address restoring the legacy of the Greenwood District’s prosperity; and

E. Urge any and all entities in Tulsa to identify the ways they have advanced and benefitted from racial inequity and to join in their apologies and invites these entities to join in finding solutions, ensuring equity, and identifying policies and practices that cause inequities and seek solutions to comprehensively address these systems; and

F. Will transparently report progress and outcomes on the contents of this resolution on a biannual basis to the citizens of Tulsa.