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Review Quotes: "America's Black Wall Street is a well-written and well-documented book. Chief Amusan goes beyond the usual account of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and the destruction of Black Wall Street. His descriptions are vivid and his narrative is compelling. He provides an historical and political context, a brilliant, yet overlooked explanation for the 1921 Tulsa massacre and others across the United States. I highly recommend this book." Vivian Clark-Adams, Ph.D. Member, the original Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921
"As both a descendent and activist, Chief Amusan's mixture of personal experience and rigorous research has culminated in a fresh new take on what led to the Tulsa 1921 Massacre. Chief Amusan's book is courageous, passionate, and enlightening. America's Black Wall Street may be the most significant read of the present time as it analyzes the power dynamics and political positions of African-Americans throughout Oklahoma, and specifically Greenwood. This is what sets this book apart from all others in the cannon." Damario Solomon-Simmons Esq., M.Ed., National Civil Rights Attorney "With scholarly detail, Chief Egunwale Amusan unpacks the brutal violence against Black prosperity and political freedom in Greenwood, and connects those events to ongoing government failure to acknowledge and honor the victims and provide reparative justice. America's Black Wall Street illuminates a once-ignored, deadly attack on Black success, while also demanding present-day accountability." Christian D. Menefee, County Attorney, Harris County, Texas America's Black Wall Street is an extensively documented work that reveals the historical and political context of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and provides a brilliant, but overlooked explanation for the disaster. The book's author, Chief Egunwale Amusan, graduated from Tulsa's Booker T. Washington High in 1985 and grew up in a Tulsa in which the 1921 Massacre had largely been wiped from public memory. After the catastrophe, a great forgetting ensued. The race war was not taught in public schools until recent times. Amusan's discovery of the massacre plunged him into a study of the past, where he learned that his own ancestors had been victimized. Other results of Amusan's passionate pursuit of unrevealed history flow into America's Black Wall Street, including the plight of the post-Civil War Oklahoma Freedmen, the term still used to describe former slaves of the Five Civilized Tribes. The book journeys through present efforts to reclaim the past through the author's The Black Wall Street Tour, the campaign to locate buried massacre victims, and the larger appeal for simple justice and recompense for damages. The book climaxes in a day of drama, with Amusan's appearance before Congress alongside the last three surviving massacre victims. The writing style unfolds with grace and compassion, in stark and uplifting contrast to the dark and ugly history that haunts many pages. It is a riveting book. Randy Hopkins, History Consultant, Portland State Un Publisher Marketing: America's Black Wall Street goes beyond the usual account of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and the destruction of Black Wall Street. Amusan provides a historical and political context, a brilliant, yet overlooked explanation for this massacre and others across the United States. He takes us back to the Indian Territory, the settlement of the Five Civilized Tribes, the political and financial conflict between the tribes, their freedman, black resistance, and political strides. Amusan proclaims "the biggest fear of white supremacists is Black political independence and domination." He makes a connection with the historic roadblocks for Black voters as the present day efforts to suppress the Black vote. His conclusions based on his research support a deliberate campaign to destroy Black Wall Street and the Greenwood community, the financial threat it posed, and the threat of successful participation of Black citizens in the political process. America's Black Wall Street: The Untold Story of Broken Treaties, Black Resistance, Political Fear, and Sacred Ground is a must read for those seeking a thorough understanding of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and the destruction of Black Wall Street.
Contributor Bio:Amusan, Egunwale Chief |
