Russell Westbrook Producing Tulsa Race Massacre Docuseries

Russell Westbrook will executive produce an upcoming docuseries about the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The NBA superstar has partnered with Blackfin, and the docuseries will be called Terror in Tulsa: The Rise and Fall of Black Wall Street. The project will chronicle the massacre in Tulsa, Oklahoma, between May 31 and June 1, 1921. At least 300 African Americans were killed, and thousands more were displaced from the Greenwood District.

Westbrook first learned about the story when he was a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. In a statement, Westbook said: “It’s upsetting that the atrocities that transpired then are still so relevant today. It’s important we uncover the buried stories of African Americans in this country. We must amplify them now more than ever if we want to create change moving forward.”

The question is, what caused the massacre? According to History.com, a young back teenager named Dick Rowland entered an elevated at the Drexel Building on May 30, 1921. After that, Sarah Page, a white elevator operator, screamed and fled the scene. The police were called and arrested Rowland the following morning. It was reported that Rowland sexually assaulted Page, which led to attacking the Greenwood district. When it was all said and done, all the charges against Rowland were dropped, and the police concluded that Rowland stumbled into Page, or stepped on her foot. Rowland left Tulsa the next morning and never returned. The black people in Tulsa worked to rebuild their homes over the years, but segregation in the city increased.

The HBO series Watchmen recently featured scenes that took place during the Tulsa Massacre. When talking about adding it to the show, creator Damon Lindelof told NBC News: “What is creating the most anxiety in America right now? And for me the answer is undeniably race,” Lindelof said in a recent interview with NBC News. “Superheroes cannot defeat racism.”

Westbrook played for the Thunder from 2008-2019. He was traded to the Houston Rockets in July and was putting together an MVP-caliber year before the league suspended the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Westbrook is a nine-time NBA All-Star, a two-time scoring champion and won the MVP award in 2017.