Next month marks 105 years since the 1921.

Tulsa race massacre over the course of 2 days.

A mob of white men terrorized in burned down a thriving African-American community known at the time as Black Wall Street.

As many as 300 people were killed.

No one was ever prosecuted.

And last year, the Oklahoma Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit that sought reparations for survivors.

The story of those survivors and their descendants, the legal challenge and the ongoing fight for reparations is outlined in an upcoming book.

Redeem a nation.

The century-long battle to restore the soul of America written by the lead attorney on the case and he joins us now to Mario Solomon, Simmons, author and civil rights lawyer.

And we're also joined by John W Rogers Junior, a descendant of a Tulsa massacre survivor and founder of Ariel Investments.

The US's largest minority run mutual fund firm.

Gentlemen, thanks for joining us.

Congrats on the boat to the so much.

So back in 2020, that was the we remember the year of the so-called racial reckoning on.

That's when you and your legal team filed the suit.

What was the catalyst for this at the time when a callous and then one?

Because I'm from Greenwood.

I'm the son of Greenwood.

And I remember the stories of how wonderful.

>> The community was.

All the businesses on professionals and then learn how my commute was burned down and bought from the sky.

And this is something I didn't know growing up and 2, I went to college.

And from that time in 1997, I was really passing it up, educating others, an advocate for justice reparations.

And at that time we had 3 living survivors that were left all of 100 years old.

And we really thought this was a great opportunity with the so-called racial reckoning and everything that was going on that we wanted to try one more time to get justice reparations for them look at the story that like a lot of us don't know about 2 were almost adults, John, your great grandfather, JB Stratford owns several businesses, large hotel in Tulsa's Greenwood neighborhood that was destroyed during the massacre.

How did you come to learn about this part of your family's history?

I learned about it through my mom.

She was a passionate defender of her grandfather who she often said that because he was treated so badly in Tulsa and she saw her father, a lawyer, uses legal skills to stop tolls from Tulsa.

Extraditing my great-grandfather back to Tulsa after the massacre inspire her to be a lawyer and per to become the first black woman to graduate from University Chicago Law School in 1946.

So she was really proud of grandfather and her father and and their inspiring leadership.

Demario in 2024, as we mentioned, the Oklahoma Supreme Court, they dismiss the case that you brought that you are continuing to fight rep for reparations.

Of course.

What's the latest?

Where are You know, when, you know, we on sport only we would dismiss Pokemon Supreme Court, but we did get United States Department of Justice for the first time in 2025.

To issue a report about the massacre.

We've continue to move forward to make sure people understand what actually happened because right now it's called a massacre.

I'm so excited that we've been able to do that.

We have thing called Project Green.

When we talk about in the book, pushing of the efforts to make sure there's justice reparations.

The land reclamation for people like mother round 2, one living survivors.

It's 111 years old and she's still fighting for justice.

And that's one of the reasons why I wrote this book and why have people go to redeem a nation dot com and by this book read this book but also join our Greenwood 11,000 campaign about 11,000.

People agree with time of the massacre and we're looking for 11,000 people to join our campaign to make sure the mother can get that just as before she or 111 years old, despite it all, despite it all a blessing.

how do you respond to those who say, you know, it's too late to ask for justice.

The people who perpetrated that massacre all that now.

Yeah.

What I always say.

First of all, you have asked the question is debt owed and as of the debt owed and that's where you start first.

And then you say when people say, oh, this is too late is too radical.

I would say reparations is not radical, refusing pay what you know now that's radical.

You think about JB Strafford.

The most wealthiest man in Green one at the time.

John has done fantastic for his self with his business.

But imagine where his family would Jb Strafford here on the largest after American hotel at the time to strap a hotel, a match and that was not burned down, hit around for his life CF strafford to come in actually save his life.

And magic were dressed black America could be if this didn't happen.

But that's why this book is about not just about what happened in the past, but a blueprint moving forward to create green with all over the nation.

I'm John, the destruction of black Wall Street.

Of course, you know, not the only instance of black or institutions being torn down.

>> What is the long-lasting impact of that kind of destruction and the generational wealth it gets stolen.

When that happens?

>> Well, it's an enormous amount of wealth that stolen.

Arguably my great grandfather's.

Well for now with over 100 million dollars and to think what we could do with that in our family and the amount of philanthropy and political empowerment come to our community.

If we are able to to benefit that.

and the thing that really makes me also very unhappy is the anchor institutions even today places like Tulsa hospitals, universities, the museums are not working with black businesses.

They're not giving us economic opportunities.

You would think that that spirit would be because you're not going to give us reparations directly, at least do business with black businesses.

You're local communities.

>> Similar to the you know, to the question about people might say it's too late, John.

Some folks might look at your success and say you don't need reparations.

What would you say to that?

I think that I don't I can't argue that I need reparations.

>> But I think we deserve a chance to build a bill businesses of scale.

You know, our mutual fund company, Errol Investments is so much smaller than the big guys.

The Fidelity's of the world.

And so we we should have that opportunity.

Bill, something great and, you spoken river Jackson's memorial.

We talked about how important it was to have strong black businesses.

When you look at what John Johnson did for our country with that money in jet and George shops and it all to at Pershing.

They employed people they created philanthropies.

It's supporting our community and our businesses in many, many ways, both the virtuous circle.

Demario.

The book starts with an author's note where you will quote, You here.

>> When I speak of repairing America's soul, I do not mean restoring something that was once hole.

America has never had a soul from its beginning.

This nation was built on genocide, slavery and racial exploitation.

Repair is not nostalgia.

It is construction is laying the foundation that was denied at the beginning, insisting that integrity and dignity be established where none existed before.

What should reparations look like?

Comprehensive repair for this country and for black people look like land and looks like opportunities for wealth transfer as John talked about, well, opportunities have access to capital.

>> Having people have opportunity to be successful.

And that's what I mean, when I say if we want to have a soul in America, we have to start by fixing what actually started this country off in the wrong direction.

And that is its Lehman.

That is genocide.

And that is not doing right by people whose been wrong.

It's not about us.

Is John, as you know, can we are getting the reparation?

Obviously, he's been very successful, but it's not about what happened is not about how he's doing now is about the harm that occurred and the harm is still happening to everyone that's impacted by the Tulsa race massacre.

>> The concept of reparations, John has come a long way.

The town of Evanston having created a reparations package, both the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois have created commissions.

Illinois recently releasing the report.

>> Does this show that the needle is moving and that some form of reparations is to come.

>> I think it was it was moving slowly.

But now with President Trump in and the things that are going on today in Washington, the Justice Department, it's really hard to make a case that these these opportunities are going to be there for our community.

As we know, diversity, equity inclusion has been kind of deemed a 4 letter word.

People can't even talk about it anymore.

corporate corporate in the corporate world, the University world.

So I think preparations even though it's the right thing to do morally right thing to create equal opportunity for us to create wealth.

That's something that I think right now or federal government has no interest tomorrow.

Some question, do think the needle is moving?

I think it was moving.

I think John is absolutely correct.

What's happening with the Trump administration.

I think the good thing about the Trump administration showing everyone exactly what needs to be done and no one now can say, oh, everything is OK like people talk about before.

>> And I think in the book and redeem a talk about how we move forward and utilizing the 5 think Greenwood principles to recreate the green all over this country because Green was just as much a physical location.

was the state of mind.

And so while we're working with the government and fighting for reparations and justice for what was done, we can also work within our own communities and do what we need to do to build ourselves You name some of those.

You name the 5 principles.

Yeah.

What are those have it folks in Greenwood, bill, their success in about 20 seconds, the one community, number freedom I they went there to be free.

Number 3 was ownership.

Number 4 was well circulation and number 5 was willful, resilient.

And that's what we're talking about this year as we talk about the 100th anniversary, the mask this year, but its also the 100 and 20th anniversary of the founding of Greenwood.

And that's just as important as the massacre, OK?

Well done to Mario Solomon Simmons, John Rogers Jr, thanks to both for joining us.

Appreciate it.

Thank you.

>> Again, the book is called Redeem a Nation the century long battle to restore the soul of America.

It is out on May.

12th.

And we're back right after this.

>> Reflecting the people and