On Wednesday morning, three survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massare testified before Congress, as the House Judiciary subcommittee is holding a hearing to talk about the centennial of the massacre as well as the ongoing need for justice and reparations. The oldest living survivor of the Tulsa Race Massacre, 107-year-old Viola Fletcher, is already going viral for the stunning and emotional opening remarks she offered. Fellow survivors Hughes Van Ellis (who is Fletcher’s brother) and 106-year-old Lessie Benningfield Randle also gave incredible remarks quickly catching speed online. 

For context, Ellis, Fletcher, and Randle are lead plaintiffs in a lawsuit for reparations filed against the City of Tulsa, the state of Oklahoma, the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce, and the County of Tulsa. We can check out their clips below, and first, dig into some history of what crimes racist white people committed in Tulsa, and how it affected the lives of some Black Americans for generations to come.

As a non-exhaustive overview, on May 31, 1921, a mob of white people invaded Greenwood, once called Black Wall Street for its thriving economy, and burned more than 1,000 Black homes, businesses, churches, and a hospital. In addition to setting Black-owned buildings on fire, white people shot and killed Black folks at random. It’s estimated that up to 300 Black Americans were murdered by white residents of Tulsa.

This hate and destruction went on for more than two days, after which, according to witness accounts, survivors were held at gunpoint and forced to go to camps where they were held against their will, as reported by The Washington Post. 

You might remember that in October 2020, Tulsa found a mass grave in Oaklawn Cemetery. Tulsa has plans to excavate the site this summer, starting in June. As of now, experts believe the mass grave may be connected to the massacre. 

In her opening statement, Fletcher describes being just seven years old and going to bed the night of the massacre surrounded by a community that was rich in both wealth and culture. “I had a bright future ahead of me,” she stated. Fletcher recalls being awaked by her parents the night of the massacre and being told they had to leave.

“I will never forget the violence of the white mob when we left our home,” she said. “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,” Fletcher says in her opening statement. “I have lived through the massacre every day. Our country may forget this history, but I cannot. I will not. And other survivors do not. And our descendants do not. When our family was forced to leave Tulsa, I lost my chance at an education. I never finished past the fourth grade. I have never made much money in my country. My country, state, and city took a lot from me. Despite this, I spent time supporting the war effort in the shipyards of California. But most of my life, I was a domestic worker serving white families. But to this day, I can barely afford my everyday needs.”

Fletcher shared: “We lost everything that day: our homes, our churches, our theatres.” She describes Tulsa as a representation of what was possible for Black people all over the United States, but that “we and our history have been forgotten, washed away.” Fletcher stressed that she is here “seeking justice” and asking the country to acknowledge what happened in Tulsa in 1921. 

Here is that absolutely stunning clip.

Ellis, a 100-year-old World War II veteran who shares he was not entitled to GI Bill benefits because of his race, and a survivor of the massacre testified that what little his family had was stolen during the massacre. “We were shown that in the United States, not all men are equal under the law,” he stated. “When Black voices called out for justice, no one cared, but we still had faith things would get better… I still believe.”

“We are asking for justice for a lifetime of ongoing harm,” Ellis stated. “Harm that was caused by the massacre. … You can give us the chance to be heard and give us a chance to be made whole after all these years and after all our struggle.” 

“Please do not let me leave this Earth without justice,” he added. 

Here is the incredibly moving statement from Ellis.

Last to testify was 106-year-old Randle, describing the massacre as “like a war” with white men who had guns. “They came and they destroyed everything,” she stated. “They burned houses and businesses. They just took what they wanted out of the building, then they burned the building. They murdered people; we were told they just dumped the dead bodies into the river. I remember running outside of our house—I just passed dead bodies. It wasn’t a pretty sight; I still see it today, in my mind, a hundred years later.”

“Hopefully, now, you all will listen to us while we are still here,” Randle stated. She described the white people who committed the massacre as filled with “so much hate” for no reason except for their race. She acknowledged that most of those people who committed these acts are dead now, but just because those people are likely dead, doesn’t mean the city and county of Tulsa, and the state of Oklahoma, are not responsible for making things right. “They owe us something,” she stated. “They owe me something.

“It seems like justice in America is always so slow, or not possible, for Black people,” Randle stated. “And we are made to feel crazy just for asking for things to be made right. There are always so many excuses for why justice is so slow or never happens at all. I am here today, a hundred and six years old, looking at you, all in the eye. We have waited too long and I am tired; we are tired.”

You can watch Randle’s deeply moving testimony here. 

You can watch all three testimonies below.

YouTube Video