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 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.