Tiffany B Lee

Voices of the Race Riots Tiffany B Lee

Listen as their voices tell the atrocities that were visited upon them and their neighbors solely for being Black. Should wanting the right to vote end in death? Should one crime result in the destruction of an entire community? In voices of the riots, we dare to explore congressional reports, first-hand accounts, newspaper articles and legal documents pertaining to race riots that decimated so many African American communities. It's heartbreaking reading many of these accounts, but it's their story and our history. Their voices deserve to be heard. Some gave the names of their attackers, but the assailants were never arrested. Thousands abandoned their homes and land as their attackers created Sundown Towns where they could no longer live. The East St. Louis 1917 Race Riot, 1919 Chicago Race Riot, Red Summer, and the destruction of Black Wallstreet (the Tulsa, Oklahoma Race Riots) are all covered; however, these are just a few of the Race Riots that occurred throughout the country. Voices of the Riots delves deeper into the Race Riots, which began prior to the Emancipation Proclamation, to explore theories of their origins and their lasting implications. We ask the question: Were these riots, massacres, or ethnic cleansings?