DoJ report acknowledges attack ‘was so systematic and coordinated that it transcended mere mob violence’
The DoJ’s findings acknowledged the role of Tulsa law enforcement in the massacre, including that of Tulsa police who “deputized hundreds of white residents, many of whom – immediately before being awarded a badge – had been drinking and agitating for [a lynching]”. According to the report, more than 500 men were deputized in less than 30 minutes.
he was told he “could now ‘go out and shoot any [N-word] you see and the law’ll be behind you’”.
Would this report help Lessie Benningfield Randle and Viola Fletcher, the only two living survivors of the massacre, with their lawsuit that was thrown out of the Oklahoma Supreme Court last June?
One would hope so, but it IS Oklahoma…