Learning Resources

3.6 White Supremacist Violence and the Red Summer

Bunk

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In this linked excerpt, Karlos Hill, a professor at the University of Oklahoma, discusses his book: The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre: A Photographic History. Hill found more than 500 photographs of the violent event as he conducted his research. He also discovered that the vast majority of the photos were taken by white individuals. After reading the excerpt and reviewing the three assigned photographs, write down, discuss, or simply think about answers to the following questions:  

  • What stands out to you in each of the photos? Try to identify at least three things in each photo.
  • What aspects of the massacre were the photographers most interested in documenting for themselves, and potentially for others?
  • If we assume that all of the photographers were white, what do your observations suggest about each photographer’s attitude toward the Tulsa Massacre?

Photographing the Tulsa Massacre of 1921. Karlos K. Hill investigates the disturbing photographic legacy of the Tulsa massacre and the resilience of Black Wall Street’s residents. Karlos K. Hill via The Public Domain Review on May 21, 2021

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