Image source: LaDonna Penny
Lacey Benningfield Rundle, one of the last living survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has cast her ballot in the 2024 presidential election for Kamala Harris. At 109 years old, and with her 110th birthday approaching this weekend, Randle’s decision speaks to a legacy of resilience rooted in black America’s tragedy and triumph.
Born in 1914, Randle was just a young girl when an angry mob of white residents destroyed Greenwood, a thriving black neighborhood known as Black Wall Street, in 1921, killing hundreds of people and reducing 35 square blocks of thriving businesses to ashes. Randle’s choice to vote for Harris not only represents her hopes for the future, but also connects her to a difficult history as a black woman who lived through the struggle for civil rights and the realities of racial terrorism.
Photo: LaDonna Penny
Randle’s vote for Harris is significant, especially given her tenure. She was born in an era when women did not have the right to vote and racial barriers prevented black Americans from fully participating in democracy. It took the Voting Rights Act of 1965, after years of struggle led by advocates like Fannie Lou Hamer, to dismantle barriers like poll taxes designed to prevent blacks from voting.
“If this is my last ballot, I am grateful it is for Kamala Harris,” Randle said in a statement shared with ESSENCE after casting her absentee ballot last week. “My grandchildren deserve a world where caring for their parents is not a financial struggle, where medicines are affordable and women are free. And our children deserve a president who inspires them to learn from history, not a tyrant who tries to erase it.”
Randle warned of a disturbing echo of past hatred in today’s political climate. “The mob that killed my neighbors in Greenwood was very angry, and this country is in danger of allowing the same anger to grip its soul again. But voters can reject any politician who incites white people to turn against their dark-skinned neighbors. And voters can say no to giving police officers Rogues Complete immunity to terrorize us. We can say no to candidates who take away students’ freedom to learn about our country’s past. We, as voters, have to protect our children from politicians who believe revenge and violence are virtues. And trust me, we can’t afford it “Back.”
Damario Solomon Simmons, Randle’s attorney and founder of Justice for Greenwood, expressed his deep admiration for her unbreakable spirit. “After the city of Tulsa helped the white mob burn down 35 square blocks and kill hundreds of black people, it didn’t stop there,” he said. “Officials also conspired with some of the most powerful people in Oklahoma to keep survivors silent for generations. Because Mother Randle mustered the strength to speak out, and stand up to the forces against her, the world is learning more about the Tulsa Race Massacre.
For Solomon Simmons and countless others in Greenwood, voting this year is about more than just politics; It is about preserving the dignity of their history. “No one who seeks to suppress the history of our people should ever again occupy the Oval Office,” he said. “That’s why she and many of us in Greenwood are voting for Kamala Harris.”
Randle is not alone in this symbolic act. Viola Fletcher, another 110-year-old survivor of the Tulsa race massacre, plans to cast her ballot for Harris in person today on Election Day.
