Beyond Apology Commission Meeting – May 15, 2026
Beyond Apology Commission Meeting
On May 15, 2026, the Beyond Apology Commission convened at 1:05 p.m. to approve previous meeting minutes, hear a presentation from the Foundation for Liberating Minds (FLM), review feedback from the inaugural Tulsa Reparation Summit, and discuss ongoing policy and community initiatives. The meeting opened with an ancestral acknowledgment and a moment of silence for recently deceased community pillars, including former state Representative Don Ross, Bobby Eaton, and Ruby Hall (mother of Commissioner Vanessa Hall Harper).
Consent Calendar
- Minutes Approved: The Commission unanimously approved the minutes from the March 20, 2026 regular meeting and the special meeting held at Langston University on April 24–25, 2026, which served as the Commission’s meeting during the Reparation Summit.
Discussion Items
- Presentation by Aurelius Francisco (Foundation for Liberating Minds): Francisco introduced FLM’s three pillars—education, community organizing, and visionary programming. He highlighted the “Safe Commune” restorative justice program, which facilitates community circles to address historical and current harm, and affinity groups such as “Beyond Whiteness,” “Building Authentic Masculinity,” and “Embodying Solidarity.” Francisco offered potential collaboration with the Commission on healing circles and historical truth-telling, and noted FLM’s legislative work on prison reform, a moratorium on the death penalty, and the Survivor Justice Act.
- Chair’s Report on the Reparation Summit (April 24–25, 2026): The Chair shared feedback from attendees, who reported feeling inspired, hopeful, and more connected to others. Many stated the summit significantly increased their understanding of reparations and the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. The top priorities for reparations identified by attendees were housing (1st), economic development (2nd), land protections (3rd), education (4th), cash compensation (5th), and community healing (6th). Constructive feedback included a need for better time management, earlier start times, more youth engagement, and additional opportunities for audience participation. The Chair also read an excerpt from Don Ross’s statement in the Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, emphasizing the moral obligation for reparations.
- Recognition of Dr. Tammy Moore: The Chair acknowledged Dr. Tammy Moore and her students from OSU Center for Public Life for gathering community input that formed the basis of the Beyond Apology report.
- Subcommittee Updates: Commissioner Monday reported that the Land, Community, and Economic Development subcommittee has grown to eight members and elected officers: Commissioner Monday as Chair, Greg Taylor as Secretary, and Deuce Tisdale as Co-Chair. The Health and Wellness subcommittee is also expanding.
- Policy and Legislative Initiatives: The Chair noted meetings with State Representative Ronald Stewart to draft a bill inspired by Illinois legislation providing free African ancestry DNA kits to Black residents. The Commission is also developing an ordinance to govern the handling of human remains from mass graves and artifacts discovered in Greenwood, and exploring ways to make the commission permanent beyond the mayor’s executive order.
- Upcoming Events: A genealogy workshop will be held during Juneteenth (the last one funded by a grant ending in September). Plans are underway to screen Commissioner Dooney’s grandfather’s video footage and to begin planning for the next summit in July 2026, with a focus on a larger venue, earlier start, and youth engagement.
Key Outcomes
- Minutes Approved: Unanimous approval of minutes from March 20 and April 24–25, 2026.
- Subcommittees Formed: Leadership elected and membership expanded in land/economic development and health/wellness committees.
- Summit Next Steps: Planning for the 2027 summit will begin in July 2026, incorporating feedback on timing, youth engagement, and a larger venue (potentially the renovated Greenwood Cultural Center). Virtual follow-up sessions with summit speakers are planned.
- Legislative Work: Continued drafting of a state bill for free African ancestry DNA kits and a city ordinance for handling remains and artifacts; exploration of making the commission permanent.
- Community Collaboration: FLM’s presentation opened avenues for future partnership on restorative justice circles and training.
- Meeting Adjourned: The formal meeting was adjourned, but informal discussion continued.
Meeting Transcript
Thank you. So we're just gonna re roll. We're not gonna vote on the thing. Okay, yeah. Right now, this is an informal gathering of some people who happen to be on the Beyond Apology Commission. Okay, um, so we can we can move the agenda around accordingly. Yes, yes, so they're ready. Yes, you're alive. All right, so I was gonna say good morning, good afternoon, good afternoon, everyone. Uh this is Beyond Apology Commission. Um, and today is May 15th, 2026, um, and it is 1 05 p.m. Um, let's see. We do some roll call. We know uh Commissioner Armstrong is here, Commissioner Evans, Vanessa Hall Harper, uh commit um Commissioner Mason. Is she online? I feel like she's a oh she's in our no, I'm not looking at Commissioner Monday, Crystal Reyes, Commissioner Greg Taylor, Commissioner Taylor West, President, and myself is present, Dr. Corency Wilson, that's it, Commissioner Keith. Commissioner Theresa Dooney. And am I missing anybody? No, don't you give me? I guess what I'm saying. Um Commissioner Monday is present. I'm on the zone. Oh, okay. There you go. Good afternoon. All right, so we're gonna go ahead and call this meeting to order, and we can go ahead and start with uh just taking a couple minutes looking over the meeting minutes from March 20th. That's the last time I met. I guess we did, yeah, March 20th, 2026. We can't vote on anyway. Yeah, we can't vote on them. We don't have a quorum. Let's vote on the next one. Yeah, so we'll vote both on, and we can still read it. And I skipped over the ancestral acknowledgement. Commissioner Dooney, you were supposed to come and hit my hand on that. Would you like to go ahead and lead us into our start? Meetings of the minds with a moment of silence or a moment of reflection. So with hearts full of gratitude to our ancestors who come together. This time to build a future for our descendants. May our ancestors flame burn within us, illuminate our way, and teach us to see the light of God's wisdom that serves as a beacon of light to keep us grounded from both nearby and distant challenges. We are exactly where we need to be right now. The ancestors' legacy inspire us to faithfully in your life, give us awareness and open up the doors of communication, open up the doors of understanding, open up the doors of restoration. That's a building inspiration for the next generation. Maybe we'll be and I would just like to add that um we honor the legacy of some pillars that we've lost in our community. We've lost uh our former state representative Don Ross. Uh we lost Bobby Eaton as well, and I would just like to uplift Vanessa Vanessa's mother, who she lost on Mother's Day. Uh so we want to lift her up also in our thoughts and prayers, and her father as well, who has stage four cancer. We want to lift him up as well too. So if you see Vanessa, just give a good hug.
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