Tulsa Outrage

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For the 1921 race massacre, see Tulsa race massacre.
Tulsa Outrage
Part of United States home front during World War I
Date
November 7, 1917
Attack type
Vigilante
tar and feather
Weaponsguns
Injured12 IWW members
5 defense witnesses
Victims12 IWW members
5 defense witnesses
PerpetratorsKnights of Liberty
AssailantsW. Tate Brady and co-conspirators
MotiveAnti-German sentiment

The Tulsa Outrage was an act of vigilante violence perpetrated by the Knights of Liberty — a group understood at the time to be a contemporaneous incarnation of the Ku Klux Klan[1] — against members of the Industrial Workers of the World on November 7, 1917 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.[2]

History[]

The incident occurred when 12 members of the IWW were convicted by Judge T. D. Evans. Evidence is divided on whether the resultant $100 fines were for vagrancy or failure to own a Liberty Bond, which violated no law. [3]

Judge Evans also convicted five men who, though they were not members of the IWW, were witnesses for the defense. After sentencing, the police rounded up the 17 men and delivered them into the custody of the black-robed Knights of Liberty, a short-lived local group.[4]

The Knights of Liberty abducted the men at gunpoint and drove them to a deserted location west of town. The men were then, one by one, bound to a tree, whipped, then tarred and feathered.[5]

“After each one was whipped another man applied the tar with a large brush, from the head to the seat,” wrote the Tulsa branch secretary. “Then a brute smeared feathers over and rubbed them in… After they had satisfied themselves that our bodies were well abused, our clothing was thrown into a pile, gasoline poured on it, and a match applied. By the light of our earthly possessions, we were ordered to leave Tulsa, and leave running and never come back.”[6]

This Land Press reported that Tulsa founder and Ku Klux Klan member W. Tate Brady led the tarring and feathering. The article states that police, "delivered the convicted men into the custody of the Black-robed Knights of Liberty." The provided document attached to the article states, "I believe the circumstantial evidence is sufficient to prevent any of them from wanting to give anyone any trouble in the way of lawsuits...all made the same statement with emphasis that Tate Brady put on the tar and feathers in the 'name of the women and children of Belgium.' The same is true as to the part that Chief of Police Ed Lucas took. Not all the witnesses said they would swear in court as to...[document incomplete]". The remainder of the document was since uncovered, which continues, "It is a question as to what extent I could go in establishing beyond a doubt the persons in the mob since their disguise with the robes and masks was complete. I doubt if I could do it in a court in Oklahoma at this time."[7][8][9] In the Tulsa Daily World article about the incident, the victims were reported to be suspected German spies, referred to as members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW).[10] Harlows Weekly also explains the contemporary connection between Belgium, the IWW and the Knights of Liberty. The article explains the actions as economically and politically, rather than racially, motivated.[11][12] A Kansas detective reported that over 200 members of the IWW and their affiliates had migrated to Oklahoma to organize an open rebellion among the working class against the war effort planned for November 1, 1917. It was reported that police beat the IWW members before delivering them to the Knights of Liberty.[13] The Tulsa Daily World reported that none of the policemen could identify any of the hooded men. The Tulsa Daily World article states that the policemen were kidnapped, forced to drive the prisoners to a ravine and forced to watch the entire ordeal at gunpoint.[1]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Modern Ku Klux Klan Comes into Being". Tulsa Daily World. November 10, 1917. p. 1. Archived from the original on December 21, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  2. ^ "Modern Ku Klux Klan Comes Into Being: Seventeen First Victims". Tulsa Daily World. November 10, 1917.
  3. ^ Hopkins, Randy (26 October 2020). "Birthday of the Klan: The Tulsa Outrage of 1917". CfPS. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  4. ^ "The 'Knights of Liberty' mob and the I.W.W. prisoners at Tulsa, Okla" (pamphlet). National Civil Liberties Bureau. November 9, 1917. p. 9.
  5. ^ Chapman, Lee Roy (April 18, 2012). "The Nightmare of Dreamland". This Land Press. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
  6. ^ "We are the heirs to the Tulsa Outrage". Industrial Worker. June 2012.
  7. ^ Brown, L.A. (March 29, 1918). "Letter from L. A. Brown to Roger Baldwin". This Land Press. Archived from the original on October 21, 2016. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  8. ^ "Correspondence-Cases By State: Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Volume 36; 1917–1918. MS The Roger Baldwin Years, 1912–1950.; American Civil Liberties Union Papers, 1912–1990". Princeton University Library, Gale Primary Resources, ACLU. Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, Princeton University. From American Civil Liberties Union Papers, 1912–1990. March 29, 1918. p. 77 (134–135 of folio). Archived from the original on January 4, 2019. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
  9. ^ Chapman, Lee Roy (2011). "The Nightmare of Dreamland". This Land Press. Archived from the original on October 7, 2011. Retrieved September 19, 2011.
  10. ^ "I.W.W. Members Are Held Guilty". Tulsa Daily World. November 10, 1917. p. 2. Archived from the original on December 21, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  11. ^ "Harlow's Weekly – A Journal of Comment & Current Events for Oklahoma". Harlow Publishing Company. November 14, 1917. p. 4. Archived from the original on December 21, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  12. ^ Paul, Brad A. (January 1, 1999). Rebels of the New South : the Socialist Party in Dixie, 1892–1920 (Thesis). Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  13. ^ Clark, Blue (1976). A history of the Ku Klux Klan in Oklahoma (Thesis). pp. 23–25. hdl:11244/4165. OCLC 1048011720.
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