...African American Literature November 4, 2015 The Legacy of the Tulsa Race Riot Greenwood, Tulsa Oklahoma, “Black Wall Street” In the early 20th century Greenwood, a neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was the most affluent and successful African American communities in the United States. The oil booms of the early 1900’s had many people moving to Tulsa for a chance at quick economic gains and African Americans hoped to prosper from the new industry as well. Tulsa, like many cities and towns throughout the US, was highly segregated, with African Americans settling into the northern areas of the city. The racial split gave African Americans the ability and motivation to make Greenwood a black entrepreneurial mecca. By 1920 black owned businesses were spread over a mile long. They included grocery stores, restaurants, and medical and law offices. The community also developed two daily newspapers. Greenwood Oklahoma’s success gave the town the popularly known name of “Black Wall Street”(Johnson). The hostile racism and success of the community lead the white people in Tulsa to develop spite and jealousy. These harsh feelings lead to one of the most damaging riots in history, killing over three hundred Oklahoma citizens and leaving over nine thousand homeless. The Indian Appropriations Bill was passed and signed into law in 1889, which authorized President Benjamin Harrison to open unassigned lands to white settlers. The passing of the bill lead to The Oklahoma Land Rush of 1889...
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...The Tulsa Race Riot of 1921 is considered to be one of the worst cases of racial violence in the history of the United States. It all started on May 30th, 1921, when a young black man, Dick Rowland entered an elevator being run by a 17-year-old white woman by the name of Sarah Page. The exact details of that short elevator ride are the cause of much speculation by it seems that as the elevator moved from the first to the third floor, the movement jostled Rowland into Page causing her to scream, “Rape!” So the question is, how can one singular scream directly ignite a small spark into a race fueled inferno? The events that transpired in Tulsa, Oklahoma began well before the first shots were fired or any bombs were dropped from above. This was...
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...Tulsa Oklahoma Race Riot Commission The Tulsa Race Riot began with a single shot fired in a lynching mob near the courthouse on May 31, 1921. Over two thousand White Americans crowded the courthouse with the intention to lynch Dick Rowland, a man accused of raping a white woman. Rowland had been heading to an elevator, where he worked, in order to reach the top floor colored restroom. On his way into the elevator, which had not stopped properly, he tripped and grabbed the arm of Sarah Page, a white operator woman. When a man heard her scream and saw Rowland running away from the building, he called authorities to report a sexual assault. To receive a fair trial, Rowland went to a court room in Greenwood, the black neighborhood of Tulsa....
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...predominantly white religious group, LGBT group, African American group, and Hispanic group- no other groups are mentioned) that represent students on campus are vying for funds to be allocated to them for their specific speaker. Because the LGBT group seemingly presented a better platform for their speaker, they received the majority of the money. The African American and Hispanic groups received less money. The predominantly white religious group was not mentioned as receiving money; however, a white group was mentioned as being at the riot and looking for a reason to loot and vandalize. The issue seems to have the following possibilities as to why the riot is happening: 1) racial/ethnic tensions already happening on campus seem to help spark the riot when certain groups did not get the money they wanted 2) the issue could also stem from a sexuality issue as the LGBT group received the majority of the money, yet the other groups are listed by race, the campus could have problems with sexuality and have issues with accepting 3) pride could...
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...Seminar Three Oral History Project Dorothy J. Klenow was a young girl but remembers some of the significant events that took place in her era. Dorothy was born in Iosco County November 21, 1938 which makes her 77 years old now. She lived through many different historical events from 1938 until now in 2015. Some of these are World War II, the Detroit Riots, and Marriage & Child-Rearing. Throughout this essay I’m going to touch upon all three of these historical events with a lot of facts about them and also with Dorothy’s words of remembrance of the historical events. The Detroit Race Riots that were held in Detroit, Michigan in the summer of 1967 was one of the most violent riots since Dr. Martin Luther King in 1968. The Detroit Race Riots stood as the largest urban uprising of the 1960s. Dorothy briefly remembers that she was there in Detroit when the riots started. She then had packed up the kids and left the city before anything to serious happened. That she didn’t want her or her family to be involved in the riot at all. Starting on “Sunday evening, July 22, the Detroit Police Vice Squad officers raided an after hours “blind pig,” an unlicensed bar on the corner of 12th Street and Clairmount Avenue in the center of the city’s oldest and poorest black neighborhood”. (Wang, 2007) There was a party that was taking place inside this bar that happened to be for two black men who had just returned home from Vietnam. Although the police had prepared for a few people who...
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...Question: 1(a) Write a detailed account of the Burma Road Riot in Nassau, Bahamas. So many of the most dramatic and significant social events in the Bahamas history were played out on the stage of Bay Street and, as a result of these events, Bay Street was turn into a place where Bahamians came together in display of unity and a place where they sought to act out dissenting viewpoints. The Nassau Riot in 1942 was a short- lived spontaneous outburst by a group of disgruntled Laborers according to source A. Before the riot of 1942, Bay Street could safely be called, a white controlled space. Although many blacks walked the sidewalks and even, when funds afforded it, shopped in the finer stores on Bay Street. It was with the knowledge that they were just visitors. Even though some blacks were allowed to work in the stores on Bay Street, the choice jobs were not available to them. A man who was admittedly colored could not even talk to a lady of a white family. Color separated the races in housing, education, occupation, and in social intercourse. Two Bases were to be built in Nassau, Oakes Field know as the Main Field and the other in the western end of the island know as Satellite Field. These two bases were to be constructed by the Pleasantville...
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...This forum focuses on the debt crisis in Greece (the 2010 EU/IMF “bailout” and subsequent austerity measures), as well as the various challenges that have been posed to the violence of neoliberal “adjustment.” The brief articles presented here have been solicited from observer-participants in the debates and protests, but also in the intimacies and banalities, defining everyday life in crisis Greece. The outlines of the crisis are widely known. Indeed, Greek society and its travails have never before been so visible to the global media eye. The aim of this forum is not so much to fill in this familiar outline of crisis with ethnographic detail as to trouble its parameters. The first section Debt, Responsibility and “Reform” treats debt not as a statistical fact, but anthropologically as a complex discourse on morality, responsibility, obligation and reciprocity. Against the breathless synchronicity of “breaking news” and (endless) speculation on the denouement of the crisis, these pieces insist on historicizing and globalizing. Piercing the blatant Orientalist tropes dominating international and often domestic reporting, they plumb the social, political and economic forces that have led to the current impasse, but also the political efficacy of “crisis” itself in legitimating the agenda of “structural reform.” The second section Precarity and Protest centers on the escalating violence of the crisis and the emergent politics of protest. The December 2008 revolt, which first...
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...Geez, there were many names given to these undead. Some called them demons, others called them lost souls. With all these names, I found only one that was truly worthy; Zombies. It was a simple word. At the same time it was the most complicated word to enter any human language. I mean just think about it... You say that word to anyone before the outbreak and what would they think of? They would, think of those horror movies or comic books where, for no reason what so ever, zombies appear all around the globe in an instance. That's not how it happened for us. There were signs for over two months. It's just that no one took the time to put the pieces together. I kind of did. I knew there was something more than what we were told about the riots and outbreaks, but I never even thought of the possibility that zombies were the cause of all our troubles. We were all caught off guard. You know, I never did believe that humanity deserved this. We have done... a great deal of horrible things to our own specie, our brothers and sisters....
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..."Burma Road” has been described as the very first sign of a popular movement in the Bahamas, and in the 1988 memoir of Randol Fawkes (The Faith that Moved the Mountain), he features the birth of the labor movement to the 1942 riots: "As long as Fort Fincastle rests on that immovable rock in our capital city," he marked, "parents shall tell their children, and their children shall tell their own of the saga of Burma Road." For most of the Bahamians Burma Road refers to the 1942 riots over pay for the men who worked on the wartime air bases in Nassau. Two rioters were killed by the British troops, more than 40 people were incapacitated and hundreds were arrested, but those unmatched events also led to long overdue transformations. Explosives were used to puncture through the limestone hills behind the caves to provide fill for the new airfield. But there are more important parallels between what is going on in Burma today, and what took place in the Bahamas 65 years ago. In those days it was illegal for employees to “pool “against their employer. But when the airfield project began mopping up some of Nassau's unemployment, two proto unions came together to form the Bahamas Federation of Labor, which Fawkes later led. As a teenager he recalled the events of June 1, 1942: "When we reached the corner of Marlborough and Cumberland streets we heard a large shout. On looking toward the hilltop we saw hundreds of ragged black workers moving downhill towards us.. Some walked swiftly, blowing...
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...Nathan Kotylak: Individual Error or Mob Mistake? A look at the 2011 Vancouver Riot On March 13th 1964 Kitty Genovese was murdered outside her apartment as more than ten residents in the apartments above watched her die and did nothing. In the late thirties and early forties Adolf Hitler convinced men and women to effectively exterminate two thirds of the European Jewish population. On June 15th 2011, over 100 people were arrested for disorderly conduct by fighting, looting, and even burning police cars after the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals, most notably Nathan Kotylak, seventeen year old student from Maple Ridge. What do these three situations have in common? They all involve the mob mentality in both an active and passive sense. While Kitty Genovese was being murdered, many residents in the apartments above displayed the bystander effect and followed Cialdini’s principle of social proof. They all followed the lead of similar others and did nothing to address the situation in hopes that someone else would deal with it. Germany ruled by Hitler was the most extreme example of social proof and also showcased the demonstrative tactics used by Hitler to control the minds of citizens. The Vancouver Riot followed a similar path to both scenarios- like those who watch Kitty be stabbed to death over a 30 minute time span, some Vancouverites did nothing. Like the thousands of Hitler followers who killed innocent civilians, some acted in ways that went against their moral and ethical frameworks...
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...Big brother isn’t watching you A riot mostly occurs in reaction to a perceived grievance or simply out of dissent. Void and community spirit has since forever been in an everlasting fight because of the human mind and its diversity. When rioters act it is due to a feeling of being mistreated in a divided society where an inability to provide success for all human beings is valid. But instead of labelling rioters as mindless, we need to ask ourselves why they are led to the conclusion that starting a riot is the only way of gaining attention. That is why Russell Brand, English comedian, actor, radio host, author and activist, who now lives in Los Angeles, California, commentates on English riots and why they occur. His commentary is posted in the British newspaper called “The Guardian”, where he also tries to explain the rioters’ motive for the 2011 UK riots. First Brand starts of by explaining how he no longer lives in London and how some may find it bizarre for him to comment on matters in his homeland. However, Brand feels strongly connected to native country and finds it necessary to comment on the 2011 UK riots, as he himself feels deeply afflicted by them. In addition to his attachment to his homeland and therefore the rioters, he initiates his commentary with an explanation of how he never actually had interest in the fictitious theatrics in reality TV. Expect when he was working for Big Brother, a reality game show, where contestants are continuously monitored...
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...names are John and Laura. The story is about how it is to be the victim of a broken and violent relationship, and how Laura brakes free from the chains of fear. The story takes place in their city apartment, in Liverpool, at the same time as a riot is going on. The two main characters are the married couple Laura and John. As mentioned before Laura and John are in a broken relationship, as John tends to be violent towards Laura. For example, when they are sitting on the couch watching TV, he’s hand is grabbing her thigh. He is holding it so hard that it bruises. Ad every time he – for some reason – lets go, and puts the hand back, he moves it higher up her thigh. This is what he considers foreplay, and it indicates that there is no romance what so ever, in their relationship. Therefore Laura has become submissive. She barely speaks, and has become full of fear. She was a completely different person before she met John – “Once, she was a girl who could set a room to laughter”. And it was because of her good spirits that John wanted her; he thought that he himself would become happier if he was with a happy person, but instead he smothered her happiness and joy. He “held her too tight” and she became a hostage in her own life. The riots in the streets are very violent. The people throw bricks and Molotov cocktails at the police, and every time they hit their plastic shields, and the police have to shuffle back, the crowd roar in triumph. There was also an incident with a delivery...
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...fact that they felt neglected and overlooked in the society. In the commentary “Big Brother isn’t watching you” posted on The Guardian website, the English comedian, actor, musician and writer, Russell Brand explains the rioter’s motive for the 2011 UK riots. Russell Brand currently lives in Los Angeles but he still has a strong connection to his native country and therefore the riots in the UK have also become his problem. In the commentary he describes the situation seen from his point of view. Russell Brand uses an overload of sarcasm and irony to describe his position on the riots. He is very sarcastic about the way the 2011 UK riots have been handled and uses sarcasm to point out his dissatisfaction with the UK government. His attitude to the 2011 UK riots is that it is a common problem, which must be solved jointly. Russell Brand is very astonished at the way the rioters are being described as “mindless”. “However “unacceptable” and “unjustifiable” it might be, it has happened so we better accept it and, whilst we can’t justify it…and work out why so many people feel utterly disconnected from the cities they live in” (lines 55-57). This quotation shows that Russell Brand can agree on the fact that the riots are unacceptable and unjustifiable but what is done cannot be undone. In his opinion the government should focus on why the rioters are doing as they do instead of focus on the fact that they burned down houses and ruined shops and so on. The style...
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...Question 1(a): Write a detailed account of the Burma Road Riot in Nassau, Bahamas. In the 1940s, World War II was still happening. The Americans and British wanted to set up bases in West Indian islands, and this included New Providence, Bahamas. A riot came about by the labor dispute amongst the Bahamian workers. They were dissatisfied with the wages they were receiving and decided to address the government about it, but they only received placation from them. During this point, one of the intrepid workers had uttered the words, ‘’Ise a Man’’, for the whites addressed the black workers as ‘boy’. Because of this, the blacks eyes began to open, and this point in history led to the Burma Road Riot. So they rioted and acted amongst themselves. So during the time on June 1st and 2nd, 1942, the riot went on. During the time of World War II, the Americans wanted to build their bases on the island of New Providence. This was known as ‘The Project’, and it would employ over 2,000 Bahamians. People from both New Providence and the outer islands, had flocked to Nassau to be employed on this project. They were looking forward to the high wages that were usually brought along with foreign projects. But their disappointment was evident because they were paid lower than expected. But not only that, the laborers were also angry because the Americans were biased with their pay. The Americans who worked along with them, and did the same jobs as them, were paid higher. The laborers were...
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...novel 1984. The novel, which was published in 1949, gave a very frightening point of view on the so-called Big Brother society, where the surveillance on society would be huge. The British comedian Russell Brand has changed the phrase to: “Big Brother isn’t watching you” in comment of the then recent UK riots, where he thinks that there clearly is no one, who is watching or controlling the riots. Russell Brand, married to the world famous Katy Perry, is especially known for his role in Get him to the Greek, where his very distinctive British accent brought a smile to every viewer. His comment on the riots is definately in a different genre, where he, with some serious and some sarcastical statements, is trying to define why these riots are occurring. Russell is starting his comment by telling a bit about himself. When he was in his early twenties, he had been participating in various protest. This means that even though he is no longer in the “economic class”, he can still relate to the riots, since he has been part of other riots. This experience from his early life is making him come up with what the reason of the riot could be. When he lived back in London and took part in riots, it was because he felt he was in need for some meaning in his life. Some goal he could go for, or like a direction, he could follow. He is sure that most of the rioting people are having the same problems as he had. However, some of the people rioting were doing it because they were deprived in a materialistic...
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