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This May marked the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre in the Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma. In the early 1900s, Greenwood was home to a thriving Black Wall Street: a commercial district with businesses owned by and for Black Americans during a time of entrenched racial segregation. But on May 31, 1921, this economic center of Black wealth was terrorized by a violent white mob who looted and burned 35 blocks of businesses, buildings, and homes in this district for 24 hours. This year, multiple events were held in Greenwood to remember and reflect upon these acts of racial violence and to amplify the stories of Black Tulsans over the last 100 years.
Greenwood is home to one of Oklahoma’s newest Main Street programs and was recently named a Destination District in Tulsa. We caught up with Greenwood Main Street Program Manager Jabar Shumate to discuss these events, the impact on Main Street today, and how the anniversary is shaping the future of the district.
Greenwood was home to two major anniversary events during May and June 2021. The Black Wall Street Legacy Festival began the weekend of May 28 and lasted through a Juneteenth celebration on June 19. The only community-led event series of its kind, Legacy Fest brought in entertainers and national speakers—including national civil rights leaders such as Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, William Barber, and Marc Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League—to convene a national conversation about Black Wall Street and the Tulsa Race Massacre. In partnership with many community partners including the Greenwood Main Street Program, Legacy Fest featured outdoor concerts from Grammy Award-winning performers, remarks from prominent actors, and a range of talks and community-focused events. Other events were geared toward supporting Tulsa’s Black-owned businesses, including an “I Am Black Wall Street” session spotlighting a number of Black businesses in the district, from catering companies to hair salons.
At the invitation of the Legacy Festival organizers and Greenwood Main Street board members, President Joe Biden came to Greenwood to speak. The President's remarks in particular resonated with economic development goals for the district, Shumate said. "He really highlighted the work that we need to do to move forward for small and African American-owned businesses," said Shumate.
The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission also led a range of events, including both an in-person and remote candlelight vigil as well as an Economic Empowerment Day. While the Commission had to postpone their Remember and Rise event featuring John Legend and Stacey Abrams, they intend to reschedule this event to a later date in the 100th commemorative year. The Commission also spearheaded the creation of the Greenwood Rising Black Wall Street History Center, an $18 million history museum chronicling the Tulsa Race Massacre, which was dedicated on June 2nd.
These events were sponsored by a variety of community groups, including many of Greenwood Main Street’s board members. Dr. Tiffany Crutcher, a board member of Greenwood Main Street, and the Founder and Executive Director of the Terence Crutcher Foundation, was one of the leading supporters of Legacy Fest. The Executive Director of the Black Wall Street Chamber of Commerce and Greenwood Main Street board member Sherry Gamble-Smith was also a key player in these events and led the Tulsa Juneteenth Organization’s Juneteenth Celebration in Greenwood—the largest Juneteenth celebration in the nation.
Economic development and entrepreneurship programming was a key priority for The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission. The commission organized programs where speakers discussed high-level challenges for Black business owners as they enter the next phase of recovery and look to build access to capital. “Over 51 percent of African American businesses that were developed prior to COVID didn’t make it through the pandemic, so one of our main areas of focus was how we can work toward supporting them in this recovery,” said Shumate.
Other events highlighted what the future of entrepreneurship looks like for Greenwood and other communities looking to recruit and retain Black-owned businesses. Speakers talked about the growth of Black-owned businesses in the tech space, as well as how Greenwood should be preparing youth to enter the field. “We were focused on what it looks like to help small businesses grow, how we can support a new ecosystem of businesses in Greenwood, and how Main Street plays into this larger conversation,” Shumate said.
A key component of Greenwood’s entrepreneurship ecosystem is an upcoming business accelerator program. The city of Tulsa recently allocated $4 million to develop a Black-focused business accelerator to grow entrepreneurship in the district. Located in an historic hospital, the Greenwood Entrepreneurship Incubator @ Moton (GEIM) building will be completed in a few years. In partnership with the Main Street program, the first cohort of entrepreneurs will begin meeting in July, using a curriculum from the Tulsa Economic Development Corporation.
Shumate said the anniversary events allowed local businesses to not only show off their expertise and bring in new customers, but that the national exposure will be felt in the small business community and the district for years to come. “This has raised the reputation of the area, created new areas of opportunity, and has allowed the Main Street program to fall into focus,” Shumate said. Shumate is looking forward to connecting the district with new resources that become available after the anniversary, like the business accelerator program. “The area itself has a lot of opportunity. There’s a great conversation happening around tech and innovation, and there is strong city government support, as well. The Main Street program will continue the conversation about these opportunities not just during the 100th anniversary observance, but year after year.”
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New Orleans, Louisiana © Bobby Boone
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Cincinnati, Ohio © Janet Hurn
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A podcast featuring some of the best advice we heard from entrepreneurs and community leaders across the country.
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Charlotte, NC © Pixabay
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Laramie, WY © Laramie Main Street Alliance
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© Allapattah CDC
Get ready to support your small business owners and encourage people to shop small this November!
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© Main Street South Carolina
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© Historic Valley Junction
This three-week live, online course will prepare local leaders to more effectively work with small business owners in their districts and create an environment that is supportive of entrepreneurship.
© Notice Pictures
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Stockbridge, GA © Stockbridge Main Street
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Spencer, IA © Spencer Main Street
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Boston, MA © Kyle Klein
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Franklin, TN © Brandon Jean
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York, PA © Sully Pinos
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Evart, MI © Storyville
Matt Wagner looks back at his small business predictions for 2022 and shares predictions for 2023.
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Ottumwa, IA © Main Street Ottumwa
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Wixom, MI © Carissa Serylo
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Oceanside, CA © Road West Photography
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Colville, WA © Colville Together
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Camden, AR © Kimberly Moore Davis
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Silver City, NM © Silver City MainStreet
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Skowhegan, ME © Kristina Cannon
Main Street America is proud to support the Revitalizing Small and Local Businesses Act
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© JENNIFER E. WOLF
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Wheeling, WV © Wheeling Heritage
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Charles City, IA © Mark Wicks
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Little Rock, AR © Main Street Arkansas
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Memphis, TN © Four Way
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Biddeford, ME © Heart of Biddeford
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Learn about the various programs and initiatives that Fremont is using to promote inclusive economic development.
Fremont, CA © Fremont Economic Development
BDOs are place-based organizations that help small businesses and entrepreneurs to flourish. They have been on the frontline of support for the country’s hardest-hit entrepreneurs throughout the pandemic and have been working to enable thriving commercial corridors throughout the crisis.
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A vacant storefront is the perfect stage to creatively promote the available space or to showcase other businesses and events in the area.
Ripon, WI © RetailWorks, Inc
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The Batavia Boardwalk Shops are freestanding, purpose-built structures acting as seasonal pop-up locations for entrepreneurs, offered in tandem with a business incubator program.
Batavia, IL © April Duda Photography
For Black History Month, we want to recognize and celebrate the Black business owners and entrepreneurs who have overcome challenges and obstacles in launching and running their own businesses, thanks to resilience, creativity, and hard work.
As a vital place factor within an entrepreneurship ecosystem, pop-up programs allow for emerging businesses to test their product, gain consumer feedback, and promote their brand at an extremely low cost. In essence, allowing for a ‘fail-fast’ product development cycle.
Asheville, NC © Ablohkin
In early December, as the COVID-19 crisis intersected with a peak moment in the holiday shopping season, we surveyed small business owners and Main Street programs to learn more about how they were managing.
© Cindy Shebley
New research by Main Street America suggests greater returns on our missions and resources can be had by transitioning to more deliberate economic vitality work centered on cultivating new business development from within our own communities and neighborhoods.
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Small Business Saturday promo pic from Downtown Goldsboro, North Carolina, showing all the folks who took the pledge support a small business in their community.
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The craft beer industry is playing a key role in the rebirth of Main Streets and neighborhood commercial districts across the county.
Appealing to mobility-challenged shoppers yields benefits beyond the store.
Being the only person in the know can be fun, exhilarating even. Except when you are the one person out of 600+ in a room and you know bad news is coming.
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In Winchester, Virginia, one woman’s vision and commitment to downtown’s revitalization created an innovative community space for the Creative Class.
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Façade appearance is a critical aspect of the overall aesthetic appeal and unique character of downtown.
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