The first Black mayor of Tulsa, Oklahoma, has proposed a $100 million private trust to the descendants of the Tulsa Race Massacre.
Mayor Monroe Nichols proposed the private trust as a part of a reparations plan to make amends for the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. Mayor Nichols, who does not like to use the word reparations because it’s “politically charged,” said the proposed plan is a “road to repair,” as ABC News reported.
According to the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, the Tulsa Race Massacre is believed to be the single worst incident of racial violence in American history. During 18 hours on May 31 and June 1, 1921, an estimated 300 Black Americans were killed, and a white mob destroyed more than one thousand homes and businesses. By the time the violence ended, the city had been placed under martial law, and the state’s second-largest African American community had been burned to the ground.
“For 104 years, the Tulsa Race Massacre has been a stain on our city’s history,” Nichols said as he announced his proposed plans on Sunday at the Greenwood Cultural Center. The center is located in what was once a thriving area of North Tulsa that was destroyed in the massacre.
He added, “The massacre was hidden from history books only to be followed by the intentional acts of redlining, a highway built to choke off economic vitality and the perpetual underinvestment of local, state and federal governments. Now it’s time to take the next big steps to restore.”
What’s in Mayor Nichols’ Tulsa Race Massacre Repair Plan?
Nichols’ plan would not provide any direct cash payments to the descendants or the last two centenarian survivors. Instead, he is proposing a private charitable trust with a goal of raising $105 million in assets. Mayor Nichols stated that while the city council would not have to approve the proposal, it would need to authorize the transfer of any city property to the private trust. He would like to secure most of the funding by June 1, 2026.
Most of the funding would be used to improve the buildings and revitalize the city’s north side.
“The Greenwood District, at its height, was the center of commerce,” Nichols told ABC News. “What was lost was not just something from North Tulsa or the Black community. It actually robbed Tulsa of an economic future that would have rivaled anywhere else in the world.”
The mayor also acknowledged the push to remove any diversity, equity and inclusion efforts on the federal level and that it could be met with opposition. However, he added, “it doesn’t change the work we have to do.”