Nov 30, 2024 Story by: Editor
TULSA, Okla. — The U.S. Senate has taken a significant step toward designating Tulsa’s Greenwood District, famously known as Black Wall Street, as a national monument by advancing S.3543, a bipartisan bill.
Back in May, FOX23 reported on a U.S. Senate hearing concerning the proposed legislation. On Tuesday, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee unanimously voted to move the bill forward.
“The successful Senate markup presents a profound opportunity for our nation to honor the legacy of the Tulsa Race Massacre while the remaining survivors are still here,” said Tiffany Crutcher, executive director of the Terence Crutcher Foundation and a descendant of a massacre victim. “For the sake of these living witnesses to history and future generations, Congress and the President must act swiftly to ensure Greenwood’s story is enshrined and its lessons are never forgotten.”
The bill, sponsored by Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), now heads to the Senate floor for a full vote.
The urgency to pass this legislation is underscored by the fact that only two known survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre, Lessie Benningfield Randle and Viola Fletcher, both aged 110, are still alive. Advocates hope these survivors can witness this historic recognition.
Dr. Crutcher co-leads the Historic Greenwood-Black Wall Street Coalition, a group comprising more than 11 Tulsa-based organizations advocating for Black Wall Street’s designation as a national monument.
Since President Biden’s historic visit to Black Wall Street in 2021, the coalition has urged him to use his authority under the Antiquities Act to establish federal monument status for the area.
Reuben Grant, executive director of the John Hope Franklin Center and co-leader of the coalition, expressed optimism following the committee’s decision. “Today’s committee vote proves that Greenwood’s story resonates far beyond Tulsa. This is a moment of national reckoning with our history. The families who built Black Wall Street through ingenuity, hard work, and perseverance represented the best of America. By understanding how racist hatred and violence destroyed their rousing success story, we can emerge as a stronger, more connected nation on the other side.” Source: FOX News 23
