Black Wall Street 100 by Hannibal B. Johnson

Author:Hannibal B. Johnson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wild Horse Media Group LLC
Published: 2020-01-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

A New Day in Tulsa

You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call ‘failure’ is not the falling down, but the staying down.

Mary Pickford

A Chief’s Apology

On September 21, 2013, Tulsa Police Chief Chuck Jordan apologized383 on behalf of the Tulsa Police Department for law enforcement’s dereliction of duty during the events of May 31 and June 1, 1921.384 His remarks came at the outset of “Literacy, Legacy and Movement Day,” an event meant to promote cultural awareness, literacy, health, and entrepreneurship. Starting at the park named after Dr. John Hope Franklin, participants walked to various significant spots in the Greenwood District.

Chief Jordan’s remarks bear full recitation:

Good morning ladies and gentlemen. I would like to start by reading you the Tulsa Police Department Oath of Office. Every police officer takes this oath before going into the police service.

Having been duly appointed a police officer of the City of Tulsa and peace officer of the State of Oklahoma, I do solemnly swear that I will defend, enforce, and obey the Constitution and laws of the United States, the State of Oklahoma, and the Charter and Ordinances of the City of Tulsa.

That I will obey the lawful orders of my superior officers and the regulations of the Tulsa Police Department.

That I will protect the rights, lives, and property of all citizens and uphold the honor of the police profession with my life if need be.

This I solemnly swear.

On May 31st and June 1st of 1921 the officers of the Tulsa Police Department did not live up to the oath that they took.

I cannot apologize for the actions, inaction and dereliction that those individual officers and their Chief exhibited during that dark time, but as your Chief today, I can apologize for our police department. I am sorry and distressed that the Tulsa Police Department did not protect its citizens during those tragic days in 1921.

I have heard things said like ‘well that was a different time.’ That excuse does not hold water with me. I have been a Tulsa Police Officer since 1969 and I have witnessed scores of ‘different times.’ Not once did I ever consider that those changing times somehow relieved me of my obligation to uphold my oath of office and to protect my fellow Tulsans.

I will also tell you that this is not the same Tulsa Police Department as 1921. I hope that the dedication and commitment that your officers demonstrated in the wake of the Good Friday killings385 shows our community that hate-motivated crimes or any other evil visited on our citizens will not be tolerated and the perpetrators will be brought to justice.

The men and women that work for you today are committed to upholding every sentence of their oath of office. That includes putting their lives on the line to protect the citizens they serve if need be.

While we should never forget the crimes and injustices that were committed in 1921, you can rest assured that your police department today will never allow such an atrocity to occur.

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