May 2021
The University of North Carolina's Board of Trustees declined to vote on tenure for Nikole Hannah-Jones, the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project, despite unanimous recommendation by the faculty committee. University leadership cited pressure from conservative donors and trustees who opposed the 1619 Project. Hannah-Jones was offered a five-year contract without tenure instead. After public outcry, the Board of Trustees voted to grant tenure in June 2021, but Hannah-Jones accepted a tenured chair at Howard University instead, calling it 'a choice to bet on ourselves.' The case became a symbol of academic freedom threats facing Black scholars.
The centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, in which the Greenwood District ('Black Wall Street') was destroyed by a white mob and city officials, brought renewed national attention. President Biden visited Tulsa. Three survivors — Lessie Benningfield Randle (107), Hughes Van Ellis (102), and Viola Fletcher (107) — testified before Congress seeking reparations. A 2020 Tulsa Race Massacre Commission report recommended direct payments to survivors and descendants. Oklahoma courts dismissed a reparations lawsuit in 2023; an appeal was pending. The centennial represented both continued community memory and continued denial of redress.
Events
- May 31, 2021Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial; Survivors Seek Reparations
The centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, in which the Greenwood District ('Black Wall Street') was destroyed by a white mob and city officials, brought renewed national attention. President Biden visited Tulsa. Three survivors — Lessie Benningfield Randle (107), Hughes Van Ellis (102), and Viola Fletcher (107) — testified before Congress seeking reparations. A 2020 Tulsa Race Massacre Commission report recommended direct payments to survivors and descendants. Oklahoma courts dismissed a reparations lawsuit in 2023; an appeal was pending. The centennial represented both continued community memory and continued denial of redress.
- May 31, 2021Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial; Survivors Seek Reparations
The centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre brought renewed national attention. President Biden visited Tulsa. Three survivors — Lessie Benningfield Randle, Hughes Van Ellis, and Viola Fletcher — testified before Congress seeking reparations. A 2020 commission report recommended direct payments to survivors and descendants. Oklahoma courts dismissed a reparations lawsuit in 2023.
- May 19, 2021UNC Chapel Hill Denies Nikole Hannah-Jones Tenure Due to Political Pressure
The University of North Carolina's Board of Trustees declined to vote on tenure for Nikole Hannah-Jones, the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project, despite unanimous recommendation by the faculty committee. University leadership cited pressure from conservative donors and trustees who opposed the 1619 Project. Hannah-Jones was offered a five-year contract without tenure instead. After public outcry, the Board of Trustees voted to grant tenure in June 2021, but Hannah-Jones accepted a tenured chair at Howard University instead, calling it 'a choice to bet on ourselves.' The case became a symbol of academic freedom threats facing Black scholars.
- May 19, 2021UNC Chapel Hill Denies Nikole Hannah-Jones Tenure Due to Political Pressure
The University of North Carolina's Board of Trustees declined to vote on tenure for Nikole Hannah-Jones, the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project, despite unanimous faculty recommendation. University leadership cited pressure from conservative donors. Hannah-Jones rejected a subsequent tenure offer and accepted a chair at Howard University, calling it 'a choice to bet on ourselves.'