Tulsa’s 1st Black Mayor Makes History: Monroe Nichols Proposes $100M Reparations Plan For Race Massacre

Democratic Oklahoma State Rep. Monroe Nichols made history in the city of Tulsa, when in November of 2024, he won the Tulsa Mayoral election, besting his challenger, Tulsa County Commissioner Karen Keith and replacing the sitting mayor, GT Bynum.

When he accepted the victory, Nichols delivered his acceptance in front of images of Black Wall Street, a thriving district in Tulsa that was destroyed by a white mob in 1921.

The Democratic lawmaker prioritized adding more affordable housing and ending homelessness during his mayoral campaign. Nichols said he wants to work closely with tribal partners when it comes to public safety to entrepreneurship.

Now the respected visionary has proposed a $100 million reparations package aimed at repairing the impact of the 1921 race massacre.

On Sunday (June 1), Nichols unveiled a plan to create a $105 million private trust to give descendants of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre scholarships and housing help.

The 1921 massacre, considered one of the worst racial attacks in U.S. history, left as many as 300 Black people dead and destroyed Tulsa’s once-thriving Greenwood District, which was widely dubbed Black Wall Street.

Nichols announced his multi-million dollar “road to repair” on Sunday at the Greenwood Cultural Center.

“For 104 years, the Tulsa Race Massacre has been a stain on our city’s history,” Nichols said Sunday. “The massacre was hidden from history books, only to be followed by the intentional acts of redlining, a highway built to choke off economic vitality and the perpetual underinvestment of local, state and federal governments.”

“Now it’s time to take the next big steps to restore,” he added.

The sweeping plan wouldn’t provide direct cash payments to descendants or the last two survivors of the attack. Instead, the bulk of the funding, $60 million, will go toward improving buildings and revitalizing the Greenwood district.

“The Greenwood District at its height was a center of commerce,” Nichols said in a statement. “So what was lost was not just something from North Tulsa or the Black community. It actually robbed Tulsa of an economic future that would have rivaled anywhere else in the world.”

Nichols’ goal is to secure $105 million in assets for the private charitable trust by June 1, 2026. The proposal wouldn’t require city council approval, but the council would need to approve the transfer of any city property to the trust. More details of how the funding would be used are set to be developed over the next year by an executive director and a board of managers.

The mayor’s proposal came after he signed an executive order earlier this year recognizing June 1 as Tulsa Race Massacre Observance Day. Nichols recognized that his announcement comes amid Trump’s sweeping attack on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

“The fact that this lines up with a broader national conversation is a tough environment,” Nichols said, “but it doesn’t change the work we have to do.”

He said he also plans to create a mayor’s office for children, youth, and families and focus on education.