Orlando Shooting Far from Worst Massacre in U.S. History ~ Revealing the hidden legacy of violence in the U.S. where hundred of blacks were killed in towns like Tulsa, OK and Rosewood, FL
Orlando Shooting Far from Worst Massacre in U.S. History
As news of yesterday’s shooting at an Orlando night club reverberates throughout news mediums across America and around the world, the common rhetoric and erroneous assertions are beginning to emerge. Don’t get me wrong; I am not an advocate of senseless killings, regardless of who the victims are, so I am not unmoved by the what has taken place; however, I do take issue with the claim that this is the worst massacre in U.S. History.
Because the United States goes to great lengths to keep its sordid past behind the veil of whitewashed and rewritten history, people tend to completely overlook the many terrorist assaults by Whites against Blacks immediately following the abolition of slavery through Jim Crow segregation. Make no mistake about it, there were quite a few instances when White people decided to take out their rage against Blacks, killing far more than the alleged 50 people who lost their lives last night. I say alleged because I still have some unanswered questions surrounding this particular shooting; however, for the sake of decency and dialogue, we are going to address this as if the number killed and wounded is accurate. The current death count is currently at 50, with more than 50 wounded.
Now, let’s look at some historical accounts of domestic terrorism in which Blacks were the victims of lethal assaults by White mobs.
The Atlanta Race Riots (1906)
Shortly after the Civil War ended, Blacks began entering into the world of enterprise, the realm of politics and they were gaining social status from a socioeconomic perspective. As the rights of African Americans increased and they began to gain traction in the world of enterprise, tension grew between them and the elite Whites in the area. On Sept. 22, 1906, an Atlanta newspaper published reports of four alleged assaults of white women by black men. This tactic of blaming Black men for phantom assaults against White women would become a recurring theme used as justification for Whites to attack Blacks, any Blacks. So, Whites began gathering up Blacks and beating and killing them. By the time the so called riot, which was more of a massacre ended, between 25-40 blacks were dead in comparison to only two whites. While this death toll fell short of last night’s death toll, keep in mind that the numbers in 1906 were most likely conservative.
The Tulsa Massacre ~ Black Wall Street (1921)
During an economic boom during the 1910s, the town of Tulsa, OK flourished, including the Greenwood neighborhood, which was 100 percent black. Greenwood was comprised of 35 square blocks that was home to several realtors, lawyers and a number of prominent Black business men. The dollar bounced in this community anywhere from 35 to 100 times. The riot that destroyed this community started when a group of Greenwood men attempted to defend a black man who had been accused of assaulting a white woman (sound familiar) from a lynch mob. The ensuring riot would leave the entire 35 city blocks that made up Greenwood in charred ruins. It is reported that more than 800 black people were treated for injuries and more than 300 Blacks lost their lives. What makes this particular massacre even more reviled is the fact that almost all accounts of this story reveal that the Blacks in this community were initially successfully defending themselves before whites took to the air with private planes and dropped bombs, grenades and Molotov cocktails on homes and businesses, causing them to burn to the ground.
Rosewood Massacre (1923)
Just two years after the Greenwood massacre, whites would again invade a prosperous Black enclave. I don’t have to tell you the reason. Yep, you guessed it. Based on unsupported accusations, Whites went into Rosewood and burned down the town. The survivors were forced to hide in nearby swamps for several days, until they were finally evacuated by train.
East St. Louis Massacre (1917)
Just as with other instances in which Whites became lethally aggressive against Blacks, the surge in the Black population, and the fear of economic decline raised racial tensions to the point in which Whites became assaultive. In May of 1917, more than 3,000 white men gathered in the downtown area of East St. Louis. This mob of White men would begin attacking Black people and burning buildings, when the dust settled, some have the death total as high as 150 Blacks.
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Other notable massacres include the Slocum, TX Massacre, The Chicago Race Riots, the D.C. Race Riots, The New York City Draft Riot, Knoxville, TN Race Riots, and more.
While many of these massacres were written into history as race riots, make no mistake about it, these were White mobs attacking Blacks and destroying Black property. So, when I hear the loss of 50 lives declared as the worst massacre in U.S. history, I am simply reminded of how the lives and deaths of Blacks are discounted and discarded.
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This is not an attempt to diminish the significance of what took place last night, but it is an effort to bring accuracy to historical accounts of violence in this country against blacks by its White citizens. ~ Dr. Rick Wallace, Ph.D.