Black Birds in the Sky: The Story and Legacy of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre

In the early morning of June 1, 1921, a white mob marched across the train tracks in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and into its predominantly Black Greenwood District—a thriving, affluent neighborhood known as America's Black Wall Street. In a few short hours, they'd razed thirty-five square blocks to the ground, leaving hundreds dead. How did the Tulsa Race Massacre come to pass? What exactly happened? And why are the events unknown to so many of us today?

In examining the tension that was brought to a boil by many factors—white resentment of Black economic and political advancement, the resurgence of white supremacist groups, the tone and perspective of the media, and more—a portrait is drawn of an event singular in its devastation, but not in its kind. This book explores the ways in which the story of the Tulsa Race Massacre is the story of America—and by showing us who we are, points to a way forward.