One of the last survivors of the 1921 Tulsa massacre recounted her memory of the attack during a hearing on Wednesday held by a House Judiciary subcommittee.
Viola Fletcher, 107, said she had a bright future ahead of her in Tulsa in 1921, but “within a few hours, all of that was gone.”
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the day that a thriving Black community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, suffered a brutal massacre — up to 300 Black Tulsans were murdered by white residents.
“I will never forget the violence of the white mob when we left our home,” Fletcher told lawmakers. “I still see Black men being shot, Black bodies lying in the street. I still smell smoke and see fire. I still see Black businesses being burned.”
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