You probably have not heard of Dr. Olivia Hooker, who is a spry 103 years of age. She is also the last known survivor of the infamous Tulsa Race Riot (or Massacre). During the course of two days in 1921, May 31 and June 1, a large mob of whites assaulted hundreds of African-Americans in Greenwood, Oklahoma, which is an enclave of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Greenwood — which has often been referred to as “Black Wall Street” — was considered to be the wealthiest Black community in the U.S. at that time.
A retired psychologist and college professor, Hooker now lives in New York. At the time of the massacre, she was just 6 years old. Her family’s well-furnished home was attacked during the first night of violence. (Hooker’s mother hid her and her siblings under a large table; she can still remember her mother telling them “not to say a word” as thugs took an ax to her sister’s piano, according to NPR program “Radio Diaries” in a special about Hooker.)
The mob murdered as many as 300 African-Americans. It also destroyed approximately 1,000 homes and businesses, leaving 10,000 people homeless. Despite this childhood trauma, Hooker would go on to earn her doctorate; become the first African-American woman to join the U.S. Coast Guard; and become a member of the Tulsa Race Riot Commission, which was formed in 1996. The Commission made a case for reparations, but neither the city of Tulsa nor the State of Oklahoma honored that recommendation.
The devastation in Tulsa nearly 100 years ago is perhaps the best-known example of domestic terrorism against African-Americans whose only “crime” was being economically successful. It is also a powerful explanation as to why so few blacks have been able to pass down wealth to future generations. Indeed, it speaks directly to the historical underpinnings of what has come to be known as “the racial wealth gap” between blacks and whites.
Some people argue that the greatest current impediment to African-American advancement is the enduring wealth gap. Further, some believe that this gap — given its size and the structural racism that sustains it — is virtually insurmountable. Without offering an opinion as to whether I agree with either of those assessments, there can be no question that disproportionality in generational wealth between Blacks and whites substantially hinders our future prosperity. Indeed, it gets worse. Recent studies show that African-Americans who are born into the middle and even upper class are more likely than their white counterparts to fall into a lower economic class once they become adults.
For the sake of clarity, a person’s or family’s wealth is calculated by adding up all assets (money, homes, stocks, retirement accounts, etc.) and subtracting all liabilities or debts (mortgages, school loans, credit cards, etc). Whatever is left is one’s wealth or “net worth.” If one has a net worth that is less than $0, one is considered to be “in debt”. (Larry Smith)
