Indiana Landmarks will host a panel discussion about Indiana Avenue and the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
The Feb. 20 event will feature Victor Luckerson, author of a book about the Tulsa massacre, when white rioters burned Greenwood — known as Tulsa’s Black Wall Street. The riots decimated the city’s Black economic center, destroying homes and businesses and killing as many as 300 people.
In its heyday, Indiana Avenue was known as the “Black Wall Street” of Indianapolis. Though its demise is different from what happened in Tulsa, the event will focus on the common threads connecting the two Black economic districts.
The event will be held at the Madam Walker Legacy Center. Panelists include Jeremy Wilson, IU Indianapolis anthropology professor who led an archaeological investigation of the Tulsa Race Massacre; Olon Dotson, chair of Ball State’s architecture department and A’Lelia Bundles, journalist, author and the great-great-granddaughter of Madam C.J. Walker.
If you go
The discussion is 6-8 p.m. Feb. 20 at the Madam Walker Legacy Center, 617 Indiana Ave.
Tickets are free, but space is limited. You can reserve tickets online.
Claire Rafford covers higher education for Mirror Indy in partnership with Open Campus. Contact Claire at claire.rafford@mirrorindy.org or on Instagram/X/Bluesky @clairerafford.
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