From: The Arkham Sessions Podcast, Episode 148: “HBO’s WATCHMEN: Episode 1: It’s Summer and We’re Running out of Ice”
Today, on Juneteenth, we commemorate the ending of slavery in America. On this date in 1865, the last of the American slaves were given their freedom, via a declaration delivered to the people of the farthest reaches of the South, Galveston, Texas.
To celebrate this important event, we've to decided to analyze the first episode of HBO's WATCHMEN; which introduced many people to the existence of the Tulsa Race Massacre (or "Black Wall Street Massacre") that took place in Greenwood, Oklahoma, in 1921. The community—a prosperous and independent Black district—was was burned downed and destroyed by mobs of white residents.
Brian and Drea discussed some of the themes very relevant to issues we're exploring and confronting today in 2020: racial violence, police brutality, community uprising, and mask-wearing. The acclaimed WATCHMEN series uses a sci-fi lens to identify and depict a variant of our world, one that points us to our realities of anti-Blackness, tensions with law enforcement, and rampant hate groups. We reflect on the Tulsa Massacre of 1921, which has been cited as one of the worst events of racial violence in American history, and describe some parallels from our lived experiences 100 years later. As an inter-racial couple, we share some ways that our own identities intersect with (and could benefit from) systems of racism. Finally we give ideas and resources to our listeners, specific to how they can act for racial justice. We want to hear from you--as we celebrate emancipation, please share the ways that fiction helps you talk about issues such as oppression, racism, and liberation.
Resource:
From Actor to Accomplice: Ways that Allies Can Act for Racial Justice