TULSA, Okla. — Hundreds of black gun owners from around the country came to Tulsa, marching to remember those lost in the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
People from different walks of life as well as different parts of the country met in unity in North Tulsa to march for those victimized in the Tulsa Race Massacre. The Elmer Geronimo Pratt Gun Club of Austin, Texas and The New Black Panther Party for Self-Defense organized the march.
The 2nd Amendment Armed March began at Ben Hill Park in North Tulsa. The crowd made up of Black Panthers and fourteen other gun clubs marched south on Martin Luther King Boulevard to Greenwood Avenue.
Chants of "Black Power" and "Black Lives Matter" were shouted along the way.
Organizers told 2 News it's a sign of unity that so many strangers could come together to honor their ancestors in Black Wall Street.
Toni Frank with the Elmer Geronimo Pratt Gun Club said, “we have multiple gun clubs including multiple branches of Black Panthers who don’t even like each other that are going to be here together, with each other, in a unified march to commemorate our ancestors.”
Tulsa police say the group tried to get into The Legacy Fest, but said, “The Legacy Fest wasn’t allowing any weapons inside. Once that was explained to them, everything was okay.”
The march was approved for permit by Tulsa City Councilors, but there weren't any road closures issued. TPD said leaders of the group urged the participants to stay out of the streets and stick to the sidewalks.
According to reports from the scene, there were no police escorts even though the participants were told there would be.
“It goes to show if you work together and do the right things everything is a success," Officer Bean said.
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