The last three survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre will not be getting reparations.
It has been reported that the state of Oklahoma will not agree on a settlement for the survivors and that the state also appealed a Tulsa County judge decision to dismiss the case last month.
Lessie Benningfield Randle, Hughes Van Ellis, and Viola Fletcher, who are all over 100 years old, sued the city and state for reparations last year for the destruction of the wealthy Black community Greenwood by a white mob.
Family members of other plaintiffs were also dismissed from the case last year. Attorney Damario Solomon- Simmons said in a statement, “It’s no surprise that the state, which took part in a lawless massacre of American citizens, has refused to settle. The survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre are heroes, and Oklahoma has had 102 years to do right by them. The state’s efforts to gaslight the living survivors, whitewash history, and move the goal posts for everyone seeking justice in Oklahoma puts all of us in danger, and that is why we need the Oklahoma Supreme Court to apply the rule of law.”
Assistant Attorney General Kevin McClure wrote in response to the appeal and said, “All their allegations are premised on conflicting historical facts from over 100 years ago, wherein they have failed to properly allege how the Oklahoma Military Department created (or continues to be responsible for) an ongoing ‘public nuisance.’”
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