Report Recommends Tulsa Establish Committee To Consider Reparations
A report based on community input recommends the city of Tulsa consider reparations for the 1921 Race Massacre.
The Beyond Apology report recommends the city “establish a government sanctioned task-force or commission to establish and implement the terms of a reparations program.”
Based on feedback from 83 residents through several “listening sessions” with the community last year, the report says residents especially want the city to act through education, direct financial compensation and economic development.
City Councilor Vanessa Hall-Harper, a listed expert in the report who represents the part of Tulsa where the massacre took place, appreciated the recommendation to form a task force.
"If everybody comes to the table in an open process and a mindset of what’s fair and what’s just, then I think we can really set the tone for a nation," Hall-Harper said.
The recommendations are in response to the massacre, in which a white mob is estimated to have killed up to 300 people in the neighborhood known as Black Wall Street.
Hard Rock Hotel Coming To Lake Texoma
Construction will begin soon on a new Hard Rock Hotel and residences at Lake Texoma.
The hotel and residences will be in the 2,700-acre Pointe Vista Development on the lake and is expected to create about 9,000 jobs in the area.
It will have nearly 190 rooms, almost 170 residence rentals and an 18,000 sq. ft. conference center.
Developers say there will also be an event lawn, marina and golf course.
Construction on the project is set to begin in March and will likely finish in two years.
State Lawmakers Want Review Of School Lunch Program
One topic that's likely to come up during the legislative session is school lunches.
Oklahoma lawmakers, particularly in the Republican majority, are debating the expansion of school meal programs.
Lawmakers are expressing interest in increasing the state's investment in providing free meals in schools after Gov.Kevin Stitt turned down federal funds for a summer food assistance program for children earlier this year.
Sen. Jessica Garvin has proposed up to three bills focusing on raising the household income threshold for a student to qualify for free meals.
One bill in particular, Senate Bill 1473, is a farm-to-school program that would offer grants to local farmers and producers to grow fresh products for school districts.
OKC Metro Libraries Celebrate “Dolly Day” Friday
Oklahoma Metropolitan Library System libraries are preparing for “Dolly Day” Friday.
Library officials say they are holding this special day in honor of Dolly Parton’s birthday.
Participants can join select locations for a day of festivities in support of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, a literacy-promoting program that provides free books to kids.
Learn more about tomorrow's activities and participating locations at MetroLibrary.org.
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