Much of the acrimony in Tulsa revolves around the issue of reparations for the 1921 race massacre, which left as many as 300 dead, 10,000 homeless and destroyed one of the most prosperous Black neighborhoods in the country.
In the early days of Oklahoma’s statehood, an angry white mob fanned by rumors of a Black uprising burned a thriving African American community in the oil boomtown of Tulsa. Although the area was quietly rebuilt and enjoyed a renaissance in the years.