Lawsuit from Survivors of Tulsa Race Massacre Dismissed in Court

A lawsuit filed against the City of Tulsa by the three survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre has officially been dismissed. The dismissal will make it nearly impossible for survivors Viola Fletcher, Lessie Benningfield Randle and Hughes Van Ellis, Sr—all of whom are over 100 years old—to see any form of restitution from the City.

The Tulsa Race Massacre—or the Black Wallstreet Massacre—was fueled by white supremacist violence. During a two-day long rampage in 1921, more than a thousand houses and businesses in the large African-American community were destroyed by fire. According to reports, up to 300 people were killed and the community was burned to the ground.

After a multi-year battle in court, the case was finally dismissed this week with prejudice, and cannot be refiled.

As part of the lawsuit, the survivors sought to “recover from unjust enrichment” others have received from the tragedy.

However, the City argued, that “simply being connected to a historical event does not provide a person with unlimited rights to seek compensation from any project in any way related to that historical event.”

“If that were the case, every person connected to any historical event could make similar unjust enrichment claims against every museum or point of remembrance.”

What do y’all think? Where is the justice?