Hi, well, welcome to Downs and Loads History It. Today in 1921, 100 years ago, on May

31, Tulsa, Oklahoma, was torn apart by sectarian violence by ethnic violence. The white

population of Tulsa, stirred up by a fake news report in a local newspaper, went on a

rampage that lasted for around 24 hours. The white majority community of Tulsa, Luted,

learned, destroyed African American properties, businesses, particularly in the prosperous community

of Greenwood, known as the Black Wall Street for its successful businesses and the wealth

concentrated there. It was probably the richest black community in the USA. It is known

simply as the single worst instant of racial violence in American history. Perhaps

a thousand people were injured and up to 300, perhaps more were killed. It was then covered

up. Attempts were made to expunge it from the historical record. Those attempts failed,

thanks to members of the community to all their stories, thanks to journalists, thanks

to historians. One of those historians is Scott Ellsworth, who is a New York Times

best seller. He used to be a historian at Smithsonian Institute and he currently teaches

history in the Department of Afro-American and African Studies at the University of Michigan.

He's written a new account of this massacre. He's also played his part in Tulsa itself,

on earthing literally some of its victims. Scott has also helped us source some interviews

in an archive with survivors of the massacre and he'll be hearing their voices as well. On

this centenary it's obviously hugely important to remember to understand this extraordinary

explosion of violence. We've been talking a lot this year about race relations in America

and elsewhere. To listen to all the back episodes of those podcasts you can get historyhit.tv,

become a subscriber and you can listen to all of those podcasts add free. We've had some

really really interesting historians and thinkers exploring this vital and very timely subject.

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