News Release

Topeka Connection to Tulsa Race Riots of 1921 Remembered in Free Public Program

Date: July 12, 2011

Release date: July 12, 2011
Contact: Justin Sochacki
Phone number: [phone]

Topeka, KS - Ninety years ago, a violent race riot in Tulsa, Oklahoma ended with the deaths of nearly 300 African Americans and left thousands homeless when the Greenwood neighborhood was burned to the ground. Victims received no compensation for their losses. African American attorneys, like Topeka's Elisha Scott, worked on behalf of victims who lost homes and relatives. A documentary film entitled The Tulsa Lynching of 1921: A Hidden Story will be shown, followed by a discussion of Elisha Scott's efforts to assist riot victims, at 3 p.m. on Sunday, July 17 at Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site. The program is free and open to the public. Please RSVP to the Brown Foundation by July 15 by clicking here or calling [phone].

The Tulsa Lynching of 1921: A Hidden Story was produced, written, and directed by Michael Wilkerson and initially released in May 2000. The film includes interviews with survivors of the riot and the continuing struggle for compensation. Following the film, National Park Service historian Thom Rosenblum will discuss the role of African American attorney Elisha Scott of Topeka in seeking justice for African Americans who lost homes and loved ones. Elisha Scott also argued numerous cases to end segregation in public schools. His two sons, Charles and John Scott, were lawyers in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case. Rosenblum is currently writing a book on the Scott family lawyers and their civil rights legacy.

The film screening and discussion are cosponsored by the National Park Service and the Brown Foundation for Educational Equity, Excellence and Research and is part of the 2010-2011 program series entitled Commemorating Our Nation's Struggle for Freedom: From Civil War to Civil Rights. For a list of all events and exhibits in the program series, please visit www.nps.gov/brvb and click on the Special Events link.

Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site tells the story of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that ended legal segregation in public schools. The site is located at 1515 SE Monroe Street in Topeka, Kansas, and is open free of charge from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, with the exceptions of Thanksgiving, December 25, and January 1. For more information, visit www.nps.gov/brvb or call [phone].