“I Knew This Was a Story I Wanted to Tell”: Russell Westbrook Vows to Spread Awareness About Tulsa Race Massacre

Over the past week, citizens of the USA marched the streets demanding an end to police brutality. Following the alleged homicide of George Floyd, people are furious with the police. Protestors want to put an everlasting end to police brutality and racial discrimination. The citizens belonging to the African-American community are tired of being ill-treated based on their skin color and Russell Westbrook is making efforts to create a digital awareness of how his community people were brutally treated in the past. 

Westbrook now earns his trade by playing for the Houston Rockets. Before moving to Houston, Westbrook excelled in his basketball talents by playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder. He spent 11 years in Oklahoma City and played alongside the likes of Kevin Durant and James Harden.

Most importantly, living in Oklahoma City had made Westbrook aware of a major tragedy from the past. Tulsa is a place that is about two hours away from Oklahoma City. In 1921, the city saw an infamous racial violence massacre that claimed the lives of several people belonging to the African-American community. 

Russell Westbrook to produce docuseries about the Tulsa race massacre

The massacre saw one of the most grueling acts of racial violence in the country. The disaster claimed the lives of around 300 African-Americans. In addition to it, the massacre which involved the use of guns and other explosives, displaced thousands of people who belonged to the community. 2021 will mark the 100th year of the tragic event that people wish to be forgotten. Moreover, Russell Westbrook is planning to produce a series on the massacre and is already on the works for it. 

The nine-time All-Star will be the executive producer of the docuseries that will chronicle the tragedy as it took place. The series is titled Terror in Tulsa: The Rise and Fall of Black Wall Street. Westbrook will be collaborating with director Stanley Nelson while Blackfin company will be producing it. 

Westbrook wrote a message on Twitter expressing his sorrow over the tragic incident from the past. “When I learned about the heartbreaking events that happened in Tulsa nearly 100 years ago, I knew this was a story I wanted to tell,” Westbrook wrote. “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.”

Through his post, the Rockets forward shared a strong message to the citizens of the country to keep fighting against injustice. We can certainly expect the docuseries to be out next year through which many people can be aware of the disastrous happenings from the past.