CRITICAL RACE THEORY: Gov. Kevin Stitt removed from 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission

Updated: 5:42 PM CDT May 14, 2021
KOCO Staff
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has been removed from the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission.This, after Stitt signed the controversial House Bill 1775 into law, banning public schools from teaching specific topics on race and sex and prohibits sexual diversity training at colleges and universities. Read the full language of the bill here.In a statement released Friday afternoon, officials said the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial commissioners met Tuesday and agreed through consensus to part ways with Stitt. No elected officials, nor representatives of elected officials, were involved in this decision, officials with the commission said. “While the Commission is disheartened to part ways with Governor Stitt, we are thankful for the things accomplished together. The Commission remains focused on lifting up the story of Black Wall Street and commemorating the Centennial,” officials with the commission said in the statement.The commission sent a letter to Stitt Tuesday, saying that his signing of the controversial House Bill 1775 reflects his, “desire to end your affiliation.” The law bans the teaching of critical race theory in Oklahoma schools. “The Centennial Commission feels that your signature on the bill at this critical time when Oklahoma should embrace its history is diametrically opposite to the mission of the Centennial Commission and reflects your desire to end your affiliation,” the commission’s Project Director Phil Armstrong said in the letter to Stitt. “If you would like to contact us to discuss this further, please do so immediately. If we do not hear back from you, we will consider your lack of response as a further disavowal of the stated goals of the Centennial Commission and an official resignation from its membership.” Read the commission's full letter here.The governor had said this bill does not restrict the teaching of important parts of Oklahoma history, such as the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre or the historic Oklahoma City Sit-Ins orchestrated by Clara Luper. The governor's office released a statement Friday in response to the commission's decision to remove him:“Governor Stitt’s role as a member of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission has been purely ceremonial and he had not been invited to attend a meeting until this week.“It is disappointing to see an organization of such importance spend so much effort to sow division based on falsehoods and political rhetoric two weeks before the centennial and a month before the commission is scheduled to sunset.“The governor and first lady will continue to support the revitalization of the Greenwood District, honest conversations about racial reconciliation and pathways of hope in Oklahoma.”

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