Public Secrets Podcast

Center for Public Secrets

The Center for Public Secrets in Tulsa, OK presents the "Public Secrets Podcast." Throughout Tulsa's history, there have been moments where the city has served as a crossroads to all that America represents– both the beautiful and the destructive. The Public Secrets podcast dives deep into the misunderstood stories and often hidden histories that have shaped the city's identity to this day.

Episodes

  1. 01/05/2022

    3. Tulsa's Last Lynching with Randy Hopkins

    In August of 1920, just 9 months before the infamous Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, the class divisions in Tulsa were starting to reach a fever pitch. After the end of World War 1, the streets of Tulsa were awash in oil money and the wealthy and powerful of the day were hellbent on retaining their power over the day laborers that worked in the fields. One way they did that was to declare a “war on crime” in the city that specifically targeted at vagrants and the unemployed. On the same day the 1920 “war on crime” was announced, a cab driver name Homer Nida was brutally assaulted and left for dead. The media firestorm that followed whipped the city into a frenzy and a young man named Roy Belton was arrested for the crime. After a series of suspicious events, Belton was hastily given over by the police to a large and angry mob and publicly lynched for his crime. Our guest today is Randy Hopkins, a lawyer, and historian who has written a series of stories for The Chronicles of Oklahoma and the Center for Public Secrets. Hopkins discusses his account of the Bleton lynching from his recent article “Racing to the Precipice: Tulsa’a Last Lynching” Our host is Michael Mason. This podcast is presented by the Center for Public Secrets, a non-profit sub-cultural institution dedicated to uncovering the hidden and neglected history of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and beyond. To learn more, visit our website at www.centerforpublicsecrets.org. This episode was produced, mixed, and edited by Scott Bell. Our executive producers are Whitney Chapman and Stuart Hetherwood. The podcast art was made by Well-Told. Our host is Michael Mason. Thanks for listening.

    36 min

  2. 10/27/2021

    2. The Tulsa Outrage with Randy Hopkins

    While the Tulsa Race Massacre has grown to occupy a prominent position in the history of America’s struggle with race, the event itself was preceded by smaller, lesser-known events that set the stage for the Massacre of 1921. In 1917, as America became directly involved in World War One, Oklahoma Governor Robert Lee Williams appointed 5 people from Tulsa’s most elite circles to the newly formed Tulsa Council of Defense. With the Oklahoma National Guard deployed to fight in the War, the Council took it upon themselves to create a new militia group in their place called the Tulsa Home Guard, a sort of private police force for the wealthy and powerful of the day. In October of that year, the home of oil executive J. Edgar Pew was bombed. The blast was seized upon as an excuse to promote war hysteria. Immediately, the Tulsa Daily World reported that members of the International Workers of the World, or Wobblies, were behind the bombing and that they were enacting vast and sinister conspiracy.  The Wobblies were a self-proclaimed socialist labor union that was the enemy of many powerful businessmen. This was their chance to get rid of the Wobblies once and for all. The brutal outburst that followed has come to be known as the Tulsa Outrage and is now seen as the birth of the modern Ku Klux Klan in Oklahoma.  Our guest today is Randy Hopkins. Hopkins is a lawyer and historian who has written a series of stories for The Chronicles of Oklahoma and the Center for Public Secrets, including a complete account of the Tulsa Outrage in his article “Birthday of the Klan: The Tulsa Outrage of 1917.”  Our host is Michael Mason.

    37 min

  3. 09/20/2021

    1. Mass Graves at Oaklawn Cemetery with Chief Amusan and Kavin Ross

    In the aftermath of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, there were numerous accounts of the bodies of victims being hastily buried in mass graves at sites across Tulsa. Nearly 100 years later, the search for mass graves began at Oaklawn Cemetery. In 2019, Tulsa mayor G.T. Bynum made a commitment to investigate the presence of mass graves at Oaklawn in an effort to provide closure and justice for the victims and descendants ahead of the Massacre Centennial. But what transpired was filled with controversy, and many feel that the promises made were misleading. As part of the investigation, a group of activists, descendants, and historians formed the Mass Graves Public Oversight Committee in order to balance the actions of the government with the voice of the people most deeply affected by the tragedy. Our guests today are Chief Amusan and Kavin Ross of the Mass Graves Public Oversight Committee. Chief Amusan is the founder of the Tulsa African Ancestral Society and a descendant of the Tulsa Race Massacre. Kavin Ross is a longtime activist and journalist with the Oklahoma Eagle. Our host is Michael Mason. The Center for Public Secrets exists to explore the history of Tulsa that you didn’t learn in school. The articles, videos, podcasts, and exhibits that our volunteers create tell the most important stories from our past without being censored or influenced by big philanthropy. To do this work, we need your support. Consider making a tax-deductible donation that will go directly into our operations budget that makes this programming possible. Donate now at www.centerforpublicsecrets.org/donate

    51 min
  • 3 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

4.8
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

The Center for Public Secrets in Tulsa, OK presents the "Public Secrets Podcast." Throughout Tulsa's history, there have been moments where the city has served as a crossroads to all that America represents– both the beautiful and the destructive. The Public Secrets podcast dives deep into the misunderstood stories and often hidden histories that have shaped the city's identity to this day.

Information

  • Creator
    Center for Public Secrets
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2022
  • Episodes
    3
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Center for Public Secrets
  • Show Website
    Public Secrets Podcast