Tulsa news: ‘Literal hell unleashed’ on Black residents, Biden says in address on massacre anniversary
President delivers remarks as community recognises 100th anniversary of catastrophic racist violence
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President Joe Biden travelled to Tulsa, Oklahoma on Tuesday to mark the 100th anniversary of one of the bloodiest episodes of racist violence in the US, when a white mob destroyed 35 blocks of a flourishing Black neighbourhood in Greenwood, displaced thousands of residents, and killed as many as 300 people within 14 hours beginning on 31 May, 1921.
The president – the first within the last century to address the massacre from Tulsa – also met with the three known living survivors, who continue to press for justice for the atrocities.
“As painful as it is, only in remembrance do wounds heal,” the president said in his remarks, arguing for a national recognition of the country’s history of racist violence.
The US must “come to terms with its dark side” as other great nations do, he said.
“We just have to choose to remember,” he said. “Memorialise what happened here in Tulsa so it can’t be erased.”
The anniversary of the attack also has revived discussions about the decades of systemic injustice that followed, not just in Tulsa but across the US, as the White House unveils a new series of proposals and administration goals aimed at repairing discriminatory policies and reversing the white-Black wealth gap.
“Disinvestment in Black families in Tulsa and across the country throughout our history is still felt sharply today,” the White House said.
Thousands of people have gathered in Tulsa to commemorate the anniversary at vigils, memorials, discussions and other events.
Follow live updates as they happened below
Biden to tap Kamala Harris in push to protect voting rights, president announces in Tulsa address
Biden has called right-wing legislation aimed at restricting access to the ballot “simply un-American.”
He has tapped Vice President Kamala Harris to lead White House efforts to protect voting rights, as Congress is set to debate a sweeping set of measures to protect and expand voting rights in the face of nationwide legislation sponsored by Republican lawmakers.
He urged voting rights groups to “redouble” their efforts and register people to vote.
The president will “fight like heck” to ensure the passage of the For The People Act, he said.
We’re closing today’s live coverage of Biden’s arrival in Tulsa and events to commemorate the 1921 race massacre.
Stay tuned with The Independent.
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