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We Helped the DOJ Investigate the Tulsa Race Massacre
How three people from disparate backgrounds contributed to a landmark Department of Justice investigation
I am not sure why we all look like we are sleeping in the photo, but I assure you that it was a lively conversation. On Wednesday evening, 16 April 2025, the Mary Jones Parrish Reading Room joined Black Public Media and Trinity University Press in sponsoring a panel discussion on the January 2025 US Department of Justice’s Review and Evaluation of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, under the auspices of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent. This year marks the Forum’s fourth annual session and took place in New York City from 14–17 April.
A panel of three people who contributed to the DOJ work explained their connection to the report and offered to the audience of over 60 participants their perspectives on the impact and implications of the investigation, now that the report has been filed. Genetic genealogist Lisa Fanning spoke about the DNA analysis that allowed her to help in identifying the remains of an anonymous massacre victim who turned out to be Mr. C.L. Daniel of Georgia — buried for over 100 years in an unmarked grave. Author Victor Luckerson described living in Tulsa for five years as he carefully researched the history of Greenwood — from the beginning through the present — for the book, Built From…
