I Felt Safe

I'm a survivor of the Tulsa Race Massacre.  Two weeks ago, I celebrated my 107th birthday.  

On May 31, of '21, I went to bed in my family's home in Greenwood.  I felt safe.  I had everything a child could need.  I had a bright future.

Within a few hours, all of that was gone.

I will never forget the violence of the White mob when we left our home.  I still see Black men being shot, Black bodies lying in the street.  I still smell smoke and see fire.  I still see Black businesses being burned.  I still hear airplanes flying overhead.  I hear the screams.

I have lived through the massacre every day.  Our country may forget this history, but I cannot.  I will not.  And other survivors do not.  And our descendants do not.

-- Viola Fletcher (5 May 1914 -), speaking to members of a House Judiciary subcommittee about one of the worst episodes of racial violence in U.S. history, 19 May 2021