Black Wall Street Could Become A National Monument Thanks To A New Senate Bill

The Senate is considering a bipartisan bill to establish Black Wall Street as a national monument.

Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) introduced Senate Bill 3543 to create the Historic Greenwood District—Black Wall Street National Monument.

This initiative aims to honor the legacy of Tulsa’s Historic African American Business District and commemorate the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

Honoring Black Wall Street’s Legacy

In 1921, white mobs attacked and destroyed Black Wall Street, a thriving Black neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Originally, the state recorded 36 deaths, but a 2001 state commission reported that the death toll likely reached 300.

On May 15, Senators Booker and Lankford testified before the Senate Energy Subcommittee on National Parks to advocate for the bill.

Ahead of the hearing, descendants of the Tulsa Race Massacre, led by Tiffany Crutcher of the Terence Crutcher Foundation and Reuben Gant of the John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation, were on Capitol Hill meeting with lawmakers.

Their written testimony has been added to the congressional record.

“Although Greenwood in North Tulsa lost almost everything on those terrible summer days 100 years ago, the community remains relentlessly devoted to turning tragedy into triumph,” Senator Lankford testified before the National Parks Subcommittee. 

“They remain a beacon of culture, opportunity, and prosperity, and they are absolutely committed to the future.”

The Resurgence of Greenwood

The Historic Greenwood District Black Wall Street National Monument Coalition is among the bill’s supporters.

They believe that national monument designation would “help catalyze the resurgence of this economic and cultural hub after the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre gutted one of the most remarkable success stories that America has ever seen.”

The coalition highlighted that May 31, 2024, marks 103 years since the massacre and stressed the importance of preserving the rich heritage and lessons of the Greenwood community.

“Fortunately, there are still massacre survivors who are alive and eager to witness Congress take a historic step toward making the Greenwood community whole,” said the coalition, referring to 110-year-old Viola Fletcher and 109-year-old Lessie Benningfield Randle.

“But we’re running out of time.”

Image credit: CHRIS LANDSBERGER/THE OKLAHOMAN FILE