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When:
October 27, 2020 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
2020-10-27T10:00:00-06:00
2020-10-27T12:00:00-06:00
Where:
Hosted online. Register below.
Cost:
$100 SAR member; $150 non-member
Contact:
Meredith Schweitzer

The fall 2020 SAR In-Depth courses are all taught online so participants can join from anywhere. These courses offer one of the most unique ways to engage with leading scholars in a small group format. Explore the full fall line up here.

For the first time, SAR is also offering the option to register to receive the course recordings after the sessions are complete for people who are interested in the topics but who are unable to attend the online courses live.

REGISTER FOR THIS COURSE HERE

Unearthing Violence: Archaeology in the Aftermath of the Tulsa Race Massacre  

Course Description:

Black Wall Street mural in Tulsa Oklahoma

Black Wall Street mural in Tulsa Oklahoma. Photo courtesy of Alicia Odewale

Next year will mark 100 years since the 1921 attack on Greenwood destroyed what was commonly known as Black Wall Street, one of the most prosperous Black communities in the early twentieth century. In the wake of renewed public interest in this story from the HBO series Watchmen and a long awaited search for mass graves, the nation is fixated on unearthing evidence of trauma and violence done to this historic community. However, a new collaborative archaeology project titled “Mapping Historical Trauma in Tulsa from 1921 to 2021” remains focused on finding signs of life and recovery in the aftermath of the massacre, as the Greenwood community rebuilt their homes, businesses and churches. They continue to fight against erasure and gentrification in the present day.   

Today, most of the survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre are gone but generations of descendant families, social justice activists, educators, civil servants and archaeologists have banded together to unearth another side of the story of Greenwood after the massacre. Tulsa offers a unique case study in community archaeology and restorative justice since descendants and modern day residents within the Historic Greenwood District are seeking justice for themselves using archaeology in all its forms to reclaim the story of Black Wall Street and find their own lost heritage and people.

Course Leader: Alicia Odewale 

Alicia Odewale SAR In-Depth instructor

Alicia Odewale. Photo courtesy of Alicia Odewale.

Dr. Alicia Odewale is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Tulsa. She specializes in African Diaspora archaeology in the Caribbean and Southeastern United States. Since 2014 she has been researching archaeological sites related to Afro-Caribbean heritage on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands but continues to research sites of African heritage in Oklahoma, Virginia, Arkansas, and Mississippi. While she researches both urban and rural sites of enslavement in St. Croix, her latest project is based in Tulsa and seeks to reanalyze historical evidence from the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. The work includes launching new archaeological investigations in the historic Greenwood district, and using radical mapping techniques to visualize the impact of the massacre through time on the landscape of Greenwood, utilizing a slow community-based approach. She has received awards and support from the American Anthropological Association, the National Science Foundation, the Society of Historical Archaeology, the Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission, and the Digital Archaeological Archive of Comparative Slavery (DAACS). In addition to her role as faculty, she also serves as the director of the Historical Archaeology and Heritage Studies Laboratory at TU and serves as the co-creator of the Estate Little Princess Archaeological Field School in St. Croix that trains local students in archaeological methods and other STEM related skills for free.

This course will take place across two sessions:

Tuesday, October 27, 2020 // 10:00 a.m. (Mountain Time) Session 1: Restorative Justice and Community Led Archaeology

Thursday, October 29, 2020 // 10:00 a.m. (Mountain Time) Session 2: Finding Signs of Life in the Aftermath of a Massacre

Cost: $100 for SAR members; $150 for non-members.

If you cannot take part in the live in-depth course, there is also a NEW option to register to receive the recorded course after the live sessions have taken place.  

REGISTER FOR THIS COURSE HERE

If you would like to become an SAR member and receive a discount to attend this class and other benefits, click here.