DeNeen Brown and Panelists Sit Down to Discuss “Rise Again: Tulsa and the Red Summer"

The Philip Merrill College of Journalism hosted a discussion after the viewing of the documentary (left to right: Lucy Daglish, CeLillianne Green, C. R. Gibbs, DeNeen Brown, Rayshawn Ray, and Quincy Mills) (Taylor Edwards/The Black Explosion)

The Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland hosted a screening of “Rise Again: Tulsa and the Red Summer” at the Hoff Theatre with Washington Post reporter and Merrill associate professor DeNeen Brown on Tuesday.

“Rise Again: Tulsa and the Red Summer” is a documentary that follows Brown as she uncovers the story behind the massacres that occurred in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The documentary also uncovered other events that led up to the Tulsa Massacre in 1921. 

After the screening, there was a discussion panel with four guests that were involved in producing the documentary. 

The discussion, led by Quincy Mills, an associate history professor at UMD, was filled with deep questions that expanded on different topics brought up by the documentary. Mills opened the conversation by asking the panelists how it felt watching the documentary as audience members. 

For Brown, watching the screening on Tuesday was an emotional experience. She said that she teared up since it was her first time watching her work on the big screen. Knowing that this part of Black history has been whitewashed, she said she felt as though it was her duty to unfold the truth. 

“This film is shining a light on those atrocities and the murders of Black people across the landscape of this country,” Brown said.  

Tulsa is personal to Brown because her ancestors are from Oklahoma. On one visit to see dad in Tulsa, she wanted to see Black Wall Street to indulge in Black history. While there, she noticed gleaming apartment buildings and a minor league football stadium, and realized that the area was being gentrified. This motivated her to pitch a story about the wrongdoings in Tulsa to her editor at the Washington Post. 

Retelling these stories is important to maintaining Black history and to ensure that history doesn't repeat itself. C. R. Gibbs, another panelist and author who appeared in the documentary, explained how he was not that surprised at the insurrection on Capitol Hill in January. He said that we’ve seen it before in history.

“For many of us that are familiar with our history, we understand that that’s in many ways, America being America,” said Gibbs. “And that is in fact one of the true faces of America.”   

Dr. Rayshawn Ray, a panelist and professor of sociology at UMD, emphasized that although America has come a long way, there is still more work to be done. 

“The rate at which Black people were being lynched during that era is basically the same rate at which Black people are killed by police today,” said Ray. 

In other words, to author and panelist Celienne Green, “the past is always in the present.” That is why oral storytelling in Black culture was essential to Brown’s documentary. With its repetitive nature, it ensures that stories, like the Tulsa massacres, are passed from generation to generation. 

At the end of the discussion, the panel was asked about how the victims of Tulsa should be brought justice. When it comes to Black people’s experience in America, reparations is something that is often demanded. 

Brown mentioned that the survivors of Tulsa wanted reparations, but the Supreme Court denied them. It was unfair because America gave reparations to white people after the Emancipation Proclamation to compensate for their loss of slave labor. 

The remaining survivors and activists created a new lawsuit recently that stated clearly what reparations looked like to them. 

“They said reparations means nothing more than land and money because of what was lost in generational wealth that was lost in that massacre,” said Brown.

Overall, Brown and the other panelists that were involved in the documentary urged people to watch it so they can empathize with the victims. Green wants Americans to view Black people as actual people, not just characters in a history book. 

“When I’m able to empathize with the subject matter, with these human beings, I give them a level of humanity that the culture has often not given them,” said Green.

“Rise Again: Tulsa and the Red Summer” is available on streaming services.