Sieber featured in upcoming CBS special about Tulsa Massacre

University of Maine historian Karen Sieber will be featured in a CBS special about the 1921 massacre in Tulsa, Oklahoma airing at 10 p.m. May 31. 

The one-hour special, “Tulsa 1921: An American Tragedy,” marks the 100th anniversary of the two-day massacre, during which white Tulsans attacked, killed, destroyed and pillaged their Black neighbors and razed a business district in the Greenwood section of Tulsa known as Black Wall Street from May 31–June 1. It features first-person storytelling from 17 survivors, descendants, thought leaders and historians, including Sieber, a humanities specialist with the UMaine McGillicuddy Humanities Center. 

The special, anchored by CBS This Morning co-host Gayle King, also will discuss an era in 1919 known as Red Summer, when mass murder by White Americans of Black Americans was happening across the country. Sieber created Visualizing the Red Summer, the most comprehensive archive and classroom resource on the era that is now used on five continents and as a featured resource of the National Archives, National History Day, National Council on Public History and the American Historical Association.

In addition to airing on the CBS Network, “Tulsa 1921: An American Tragedy,” will be available for live stream and on demand on Paramount+ and be presented on  the Smithsonian Channel at 10 p.m. and BET at 11 p.m., both on June 1. Learn more about the special and watch the preview online.