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The Oklahoma Supreme Court straight-up dismissed the lawsuit brought by the last two remaining survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre.
CNN reports the elderly pair likely missed their final chance at justice.
As previously reported by The Shade Room, survivors Viola Fletcher, Lessie Benningfield Randle, and the late Hughes Van Ellis (may he rest in power) filed a lawsuit against the city of Tulsa in 2020.
Their goal was to hold the city accountable for the devastation their communities faced over 100 years ago during the Tulsa Race Massacre. A white mob burned Greenwood, a thriving Black neighborhood, to the ground in 1921. They killed, robbed, and destroyed everything in sight. There were 35 blocks left in ruins after 16 hours of terror.
The survivors stated that Tulsa has been profiting off of the tragedy by promoting it as a tourist attraction without giving money to the victims or community. Additionally, they believe the tragedy created a “public nuisance,” and they were deserving of compensation.
However, the courts were not trying to hear it! The district court first dismissed the case, stating the survivors didn’t have the right to be compensated because they were connected to the event. Furthermore, the Oklahoma Supreme Court agreed, claiming the law doesn’t allow them to expand the public nuisance rules to give the survivors the justice they’re seeking.
The court did acknowledge that the “grievance with the social and economic inequities” from the massacre is “legitimate and worthy of merit.” However, at the end of the day, they didn’t feel they could rule in the survivor’s favor based on the current laws. I
It’s a sad end to a lifelong fight for 109-year-old Viola Fletcher and 107-year-old Lessie Benningfield. Their lawyer stated this was their last chance, and he hoped the courts would get it right.
We’ll have to see if they have any legal options left to receive the closure and compensation they deserve.
