The Tulsa Law Review at the University of Tulsa College of Law will host a special symposium issue of the law review as part of a commemoration of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre with a live event in May 2021 and publication of papers in September of 2021.
During the Tulsa Race Massacre (also known as the Tulsa Race Riot), which occurred over 18 hours on May 31-June 1, 1921, a white mob attacked residents, homes and businesses in the predominantly Black Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The event remains one of the worst incidents of racial violence in U.S. history, and one of the least-known: News reports were largely squelched, despite the fact that hundreds of people were killed and thousands left homeless.
This special symposium issue will examine legal and historical issues related to race, civil rights, desegregation, critical race theory, lynching, police brutality as a modern form of lynching, the school to prison pipeline, the previous presidential administration as a second “redemption,” and other related and appropriate topics, broadly defined. In addition, innovative articles discussing legal strategies to enhance wealth accumulation in the African American community would be appropriate, given that Black Wall Street represented a historic epicenter of Black entrepreneurship.
Articles focusing on Oklahoma related civil rights legal topics are particularly welcome, as are those which relate to the interaction between Oklahoma and other neighboring states such as Texas, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico and Arkansas. This symposium extends a warm invitation to scholars at Historically Black law schools such as FAMU, Howard University School of Law, North Carolina Central University, Southern University Law Center, Texas Southern University, and the University of the District of Columbia.
Please direct submissions to Adam Heavin, Editor in Chief, Tulsa Law Review, and note that you wish to have them included in our special symposium issue commemorating the Tulsa Race Massacre. Adam can be reached at tlr@utulsa.edu. Submissions on this topic can also be made through Scholastica. Essays, shorter articles, and full length articles will be considered. We are working on a condensed schedule and hoping to receive submissions by the end of this month or potentially into next month for pieces by authors with unique perspectives on the topic or direct ties to the issue. If you are interested in submitting, but worried about the time frame, please do not hesitate to reach out to Adam. Also, we are currently only accepting pieces related to the Tulsa Race Massacre issue at this time. Other pieces will not be considered for publication.