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>>> HOW MUCH DO WE REALLY KNOW
ABOUT AMERICAS HISTORY, THATS
IS THE QUESTION THAT MORE PEOPLE
ASK THEMSELVES THIS WEEK 100
YEARS AFTER THE TULSA RACE
MASSACRE.
TOM HANKS IS ASKING HIMSELF THAT
IN A "NEW YORK TIMES" OP-ED.
HE CONSIDERS HIMSELF A LAY
HISTORIAN.
HE ONLY LEARNED OF THE MASSACRE
LAST YEAR.
A WHITE MOB STORMED TULSAS
GREENWOOD NEIGHBORHOOD, A
WEALTHY BLACK ENCLAVE KNOWN AS
BLACK WALL STREET.
WE DONT KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE
DIED.
HUNDREDS, MOST LIKELY, WE KNOW
THAT IT DISPLACED THOUSANDS OF
BLACK RESIDENTS.
IF THIS YEARS CENTENNIAL TAUGHT
US ANYTHING, IT IS THAT TOM
HANKS IS NOT ALONE.
SOME FOLKS LEARNED ABOUT THE
MASSACRE IN 2019 FROM WATCHMAN.
MANY MAY HAVE JUST LEARNED IT
LAST WEEK.
WHAT ELSE MIGHT OUR AMERICAN
HISTORY TEXTBOOKS BE OMITTING?
JOINING US NOW IS GILLIAN
BROCKEL. A STAFF WRITER FOR "THE
A STAFF WRITER FOR "THE
WASHINGTON POST" HISTORY
CLUBBING THEYRE ALONG THE TULSA
MEMBERSHIP INCLUDING A CUOUP THA
HAPPENED IN WILMINGTON.
THERE IS ALSO THE ONE THAT
BURNED DOWN THE TOWN OF
ROSEWOOD, FLORIDA.
THE BASIS FOR THE MOVIE
ROSEWOOD.
ALTHOUGH THE MOVIE IS
FICTIONALIZED.
WHAT IS THE HOPE IN TERMS OF WHAT SHARING THESE STORIES TODAY
WHAT SHARING THESE STORIES TODAY
MIGHT CHANGE OR ACCOMPLISH?
>> I DONT THINK PEOPLE REALIZE
HOW OFTEN THESE HAPPEN.
WE HAVE THE MEME SHOWING UP,
MASSACRES HAPPENED ALL OVER THE
COUNTRY, NORTH AND SOUTH
THROUGHOUT HISTORY.
AND ITS, YOU KNOW, FOR
SOMETHING THAT IS BEING SHARED
ON THE INTERNET, ITS ACTUALLY A
PRETTY GOOD MEME.
IT IS FAIRLY ACCURATE.
THE ONLY THING I CAN FIND THAT
ISNT ACCURATE IS, LIKE, SOME
THINGS ARE MISSPELLED.
BUT IT GETS A WHOLE LOT OF THE
RACIST MASSACRES AGAINST BLACK
PEOPLE IN HISTORY.
BUT I WILL SAY, YOU KNOW, AS
GOOD AS THIS MEME IS, ITS NOT
COMPREHENSIVE.
ITS NOT EXHAUSTIVE.
THERE ARE MANY MORE THAT DIDNT
EVEN MAKE IT ON TO THE MAP.
SOME OF THE ONES THAT WE HAVE
WRITTEN ABOUT AT THE ORANGEBURG
MASSACRE IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
EBENEEZER CREEK IS ONE I WROTE
ABOUT AT THE END OF THE CIVIL
WAR.
CAN YOU EVEN GO BACK TO THE
MASSACRE OF BLACK PEOPLE THAT
HAPPENED AFTER MATT TURNERS
REBELLION FAILED.
IT IS SOMETHING THAT IS
HAPPENING THROUGHOUT AMERICAN
HISTORY.
>> I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT KIND OF CHILLS SOME PEOPLE
AS THEY BEGIN TO LEARN ABOUT
THIS IS THAT IT FEELS LIKE AN
ONSLAUGHT.
IF IF YOU GREW UP THINKING ONE
THING ABOUT AMERICAN HISTORY AND
THEN LEARNING THEY KILLED BLACK
PEOPLE HERE.
THEY MASSACRED THEM HERE.
THEY LYNCHED THEM EN MASSE HERE,
THEY KICKED THEM OUT OF
GOVERNMENT THERE.
IT CAN FEEL A LITTLE BIT LIKE
THE EARTH HAS SPUN OFF OF ITS
AXIS.
WHAT DO YOU MAKE IN TERMS OF
SOME OF THE -- NOT EVEN PUSH
BACK BUT THIS ALMOST THE FEELING
OF BEING DROWNED BY SOME OF THIS
HISTORY THAT A LOT OF AMERICANS
ARE JUST HEARING FOR FIRST TIME?
>> A LOT IS THE FAILURE OF
HISTORY EDUCATION FOR DECADES,
FOR PEOPLE WERE TAUGHT AN
INACCURATE VERSION OF HISTORY
THAT DIDNT ACTUALLY HAPPEN.
THIS LOST CAUSE VERSION OF THE
CIVIL WAR AND OF BLACK AMERICA
AFTER THE CIVIL WAR THAT SO MANY
PEOPLE ARE STILL FRANKLY TAUGHT.
BUT CERTAINLY WERENT TAUGHT THE
MOST OF THEIR LIVES.
WHEN YOU LEARN SOMETHING, SINCE
YOUVE BEEN A KID, YOU THINK YOU
HOLD ON TO THOSE BELIEFS
TIGHTER.
MORE TIGHTLY THAN IF YOU HAVE
THEM LATER IN IT LIFE.
IT WASNT A RIOT BETWEEN BLACK
AND WHITE PEOPLE, IT WAS A
MASSACRE OF WHITE PEOPLE
MASSACRING BLACK PEOPLE FOR
RACIST REASONS.
THEY SAID THEY WERE WHITE
SUPREMACISTS.
THEY DID NOT ACT LIKE HEROES.
ITS A VERY SHOCKING THING TO
HEAR.
EVERYBODY YOUVE BEEN TOLD YOUR
WHOLE LIFE HAS BEEN A MYTHOLOGY.
>> WELL, AND DEPENDING ON -- WE
SHOULD NOTE THAT ROBERT E. LEE
DID NOT CREATE THIS LOST CAUSE.
YOU KNOW THE CIVIL WAR. HE DIDNT LET ANYBODY --
HE DIDNT LET ANYBODY --
>> HE SAID PUT THE FLAGS AWAY.
>> WHAT ABOUT THE STATE EFFORTS
TO BAN IT OR RESTRICT IT?
YOU DONT SEE HOW THEYRE
SUPPOSED TO WORK.
THE SUREST WAY TO GET A YOUNG
PERSON TO GET THEM TO DO
SOMETHING YOU DONT WANT THEM TO
DO IS KEEP IT AWAY FROM THEM.
>> YEAH, I MEAN, ILL LET THE
POLITICIANS AND HISTORIANS FIGHT
OVER POLITICAL RACE THEORY.
THE MASSACRES THAT A LOT OF
PEOPLE LEARNED ABOUT FOR THE
FIRST TIME THIS WEEK, THEYRE
THE EXACT THINGS THAT PEOPLE
WILL BE PRESENTED FROM IF
KNOWING IN THE PAST.
SO, YOU KNOW, IT REALLY WOULD BE
A CONTINUATION OF THE SAME
THING.
THAT PEOPLE WHO ARE RAISED WITH
THE LOSS.
THINGS HAVE BEEN BETTER.
IT WOULD JUST BE GOING BACK.
ITS NOT ONLY THAT IT IS JUST IN
ACCURATE.
ITS JUST NOT ACCURATE.
SPEAKING OF INACCURACIES, THERE
ARE IMAGES GOING AROUND FACEBOOK
THAT I NOTICED THAT ARE SHARED
ON BLACK FACEBOOK AND BLACK
TWITTER THAT CLAIM TO SHARE
HISTORIC ALAN
HISTORICAL ANECDOTES.
THIS IS ONE I SAW ONLINE.
JUST TODAY.
IT SAYS WHEN FBI DIRECTOR J.
EDGAR HOOVER WAS ASKED THE SING
THE GREATEST THREAT TO USA, HE
ANSWERED NEGRO UNITY.
TAKE THAT A MINUTE TO SOAK IN.
ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS GOOGLE J.
EDGAR HOOVER AND SEE HE DID NOT
SAY.
THAT HE WAS REFERRING TO THE
BLACK PANTHER PARTY.
IT SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING HE
WOULD HAVE SAID.
ITS FALSE.
THERE IS ONE THING I CANT SAY
IS SOMETHING THAT AIMS TO KEEP
BLACK FOLKS ANGRY AND IGNORANT.
LET ALONE BEING GULLIBLE ON
THINGS YOU READ ON FACEBOOK.
I CANT REALLY DESCRIBE IN THIS
FEEF
IN TV FRIENDLY LANGUAGE HOW
ANGRY THIS MAKES ME.
PUT TO PUT FALSE INFORMATION IN
THE MINDS OF BLACK FOLKS TO KEEP
US MAD AT OUR LOT IN LIFE.
I CANT -- I DONT EVEN KNOW
WHAT TO DO WITH IT.
I CANT HANDLE IT.
HOW DO YOU SEE IT?
>> I MEAN, IF YOU TELL THE TRUTH
ABOUT THE QUOTE THAT J. EDGAR
ACTUALLY SAID THE GREATEST
THREAT TO NATIONAL SECURITY WAS
THE BLACK PANTHER PARTY, ITS
NOT A DEFENSE OF J. EDGAR HOOVER.
I MEAN, WE STILL KNOW THAT HE
WAS DOING SUR SURVEILLANCES.
THERE IS NO NEED TO EXAGGERATE
HISTORY WHEN THE TRUTH, YOU
KNOW, SPEAKS FOR ITSELF.
>> BLACK FOLKS, PLEASE DONT
FOLLOW FOR THIS OKIE DOAK ON
FACEBOOK AND TWITTER.
DO NOT FALL FOR THE MEMES THAT