Did the Monitor report on the 1921 Tulsa massacre?
We were asked about what coverage The Christian Science Monitor provided in 1921, when several hundred African Americans were killed by a white mob in the Greenwood section of Tulsa, Oklahoma, on May 31 and June 1.
The Tulsa Historical Society and Museum provides online information and an exhibit about this century-old event. It includes this description:
The attack on Greenwood was one of the most significant events in Tulsa’s history. Following World War I, Tulsa was recognized nationally for its affluent African American community known as the Greenwood District. This thriving business district and surrounding residential area was referred to as “Black Wall Street.” In June 1921, a series of events nearly destroyed the entire Greenwood area.1
Searching our records, The Mary Baker Eddy Library’s researchers have located a number of Monitor articles that were published in the wake of those attacks. Perhaps most significant was a June 6, 1921, editorial titled “Race Riots and Individual Merit.”
Click on these links to access PDF documents of the Monitor’s coverage:
- June 2, 1921: “Tulsa Buildings Burned by Mob”
- June 3, 1921: “Quiet Follows Riot in Tulsa, Oklahoma”
- June 6, 1921: “Race Riots and Individual Merit”
- June 27, 1921: “Indictments Follow Tulsa Race Riots”
- July 30, 1921: “Negroes Gather for Race Meeting”
This month the Monitor has reported from Tulsa on the centennial anniversary of the Greenwood massacre, including the podcast Tulsa Rising.
- “1921 Tulsa Race Massacre,” Tulsa Historical Society and Museum, https://www.tulsahistory.org/exhibit/1921-tulsa-race-massacre/#flexible-content, accessed 6/10/2021.