Justice for Greenwood unveils ‘Project Greenwood’ to honor Tulsa Race Massacre victims

Justice For Greenwood is planning an initiative to honor the victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and their descendants. The initiative is called 'Project Greenwood' and it includes a victim compensation fund, building a level 1 trauma center in Greenwood, and a business program for descendants.

What is Justice for Greenwood?

1. Justice for Greenwood is a group of volunteers, advocates, survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre, and more, all with a mission to receive justice and reparations for the Greenwood community, massacre survivors, and descendants.
2. The group aims to revitalize Greenwood and bring awareness to racial inequality and injustice stemming from the Tulsa Race Massacre. 

What is Project Greenwood?

1. Project Greenwood is the newest proposal by Justice for Greenwood, following a U.S. Department of Justice report documenting the horrors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
2. The plan came together with input from the group, as well as the last two living massacre survivors.
3. The group says this plan is the most comprehensive plan so far and will repair the harm caused by the destruction of the historic Greenwood district. 

What does the proposed plan include?

The plan includes several elements including but not limited to a victim compensation fund, building a level 1 trauma center in Greenwood, and a business program for descendants of the massacre. 

Compensation:

1. Direct payments to the last know living Tulsa Race Massacre Survivors, Viola Fletcher and Lessie Randle.

Business Program:

1. Asking the city to provide an employment preference program to descendants who seek employment with the city.
2. Justice for Greenwood says this does not mean that descendants do not automatically get the job. 

Scholarship Program:

1. Available to verified descendants who are residents of Oklahoma and those in other states who seek to attend a university, college, or other post-high school program in Tulsa.

Surviving Entity Program:

1. This is for the entities still left after the massacre, 13 churches and Booker T. Washington High School, to help them continue to grow.

Contracting Preference Program:

1. Asking the city to establish a contracting preference for verified descendants who bid on any city contract.

Immunity:

1. Survivors and descendants are immune from all City of Tulsa taxes, fees, assessments and/or utility expenses. 

Land Audit:

1. Asking the city to conduct an audit of the land it owns in Greenwood and determine whether it was unlawfully gained during or after the massacre and return it to the family or pay the families for the land.

New Hospital:

1. Building a Level 1 Trauma Center in North Tulsa named after Dr. A.C. Jackson—a race massacre victim and Greenwood hospital owner and surgeon. It would be named the 'Dr. A.C. Jackson Memorial Hospital.'

Official Holiday:

1. Asking the city to make June 1 an official holiday to ensure the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre is never forgotten.

Records Release:

1. Asking the city to release all Tulsa Race Massacre records.

Criminal Investigation:

1. Asking the city to open criminal investigation at Oaklawn Cemetery for victims killed in the massacre

Statement from Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols:

1. Justice for Greenwood says it has been in contact with Mayor Monroe Nichols about the project, and says he is on board with "elements" of the project.
2. A statement from the Mayor's office about the project says, "I look forward to implementing significant elements of the plan in partnership with Justice for Greenwood and other stakeholders. In the coming weeks, I will share the framework my administration will use to heal the open wounds left by the massacre and create a stronger, more unified Tulsa for all."