Part 2 of our story on the Tulsa Race Massacre looks at the historic lawsuit for reparations going on right now. We have a riveting conversation with Hughes Van Ellis, 101, one of three living survivors – and a plaintiff in that case. Guests Eric Miller and Kristi Williams return to give us the inside scoop on the case and the government’s literal coverup of possible mass graves.
SHOW NOTES
Guests: Kristi Williams, Eric Miller, Hughes Van Ellis
Hughes Van Ellis, 101, is a survivor of the Tulsa massacre. Along with his sister Viola Fletcher, 108, and Mother Randle, 108, he is a plaintiff in the Tulsa lawsuit that’s going forward in court.
Kristi Williams is a Tulsa-based activist and organizer. She chairs the Greater Tulsa African American Affairs Commission. Kristi’s great-aunt Janie was a survivor of the Tulsa Race Massacre.
Eric Miller is a professor at Loyola Law School and an expert on reparations. He is co-counsel on the groundbreaking lawsuit filed by Justice For Greenwood, seeking reparations for the Tulsa massacre.
Highlights of episode:
[5:28] Kristi Williams on the search for mass graves and a dispute over the number killed in the massacre
[11:07] Tony, Adam, and Eric Miller on the reparations lawsuit in Tulsa
[15:29] Tony on a new court ruling in the lawsui
[18:57] Hughes Van Ellis interview
[31:54] Eric Miller reflects on a key question for reparations
[34:34] What people can do to help
Check out Justice For Greenwood’s reparations lawsuit for the Tulsa massacre.
Groups fighting for change in Tulsa:
- Justice For Greenwood Founded by Damario Solomon-Simmons, lead attorney for the Tulsa lawsuit and hero for civil rights in Oklahoma, this group is fighting for reparations for the massacre.
- Terence Crutcher Foundation Based in Tulsa, they are working to end racial violence, especially by police against unarmed Black men.
More about the Tulsa Race Massacre:
- The Nation Must Awake: My Witness to the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921 A riveting firsthand account by Tulsa resident and journalist Mary Parrish.
- Reconstructing the Dreamland: The Tulsa Riot of 1921 (Race, Reparations, and Reconciliation) A history of the massacre with a focus on reparations, by Alfred Brophy.
Contact Tony & Adam
Transcript of this episode
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