Writing a new city story
This is the Feb. 15, 2022 edition of the Opportunity Miami newsletter, which we send every Tuesday. Click here to subscribe to get our weekly updates in your inbox.
When the Financial Times is calling Miami the most important city in the U.S., Milken Institute is hosting salons across the community, and Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway are staging the PivotMIA conference on Miami Beach, it may seem strange to take cues from another city.
But, then again, the learning never ends.
Last week, I went to Tulsa, Okla., a metropolitan area of 1 million people in the heart of the country. Home to one of the worst race massacres in U.S. history, and a place that has long grappled with the boom and bust cycles of the oil industry, it is today trying to write a new story.
Just over a century ago, Tulsa’s Greenwood District was home to one of the wealthiest Black communities in the U.S., famously dubbed as “Black Wall Street.” But in 1921, the Greenwood District was burned to the ground by a white mob, killing some 300 Black residents and leaving 10,000 homeless. Countless businesses were destroyed, with little recourse as insurance claims went unpaid.
Yet, the district rebuilt, and was thriving again by the 1940s — only to see the Federal Government deal another near-fatal blow. As it did in Black communities across the U.S., the government constructed a highway right through Greenwood — just as I-95 was built through Miami’s Overtown neighborhood — resulting in razed businesses and homes, neighborhoods divided and a community crushed.
But things are stirring again in Tulsa.
I initially heard about it from Miami friends Brian Brackeen, Felecia Hatcher and Richard Florida. Last year’s centennial remembrance of the Tulsa Race Massacre raised awareness of the tragic history. Meanwhile, word started to spread.
So, when Ben Stewart of George Kaiser Family Foundation extended an offer to visit Tulsa with Richard, I quickly said yes.
Over the course of the visit, I learned many things. But I’ll start with this: a remarkable group of people are working hard to take hold of this city’s future from the ground up. One person after another talked passionately about why they’re personally invested, including Tulsa natives, transplants, and people who grew up in Tulsa and left thinking they’d never return.
Many shared that Tulsa’s allure is its proximity to change; that it’s a place where you can have a hand in shaping the community. One person said to me, “It’s big enough so your voice is amplified, and small enough so your voice is heard.”
A culture filled with people taking personal ownership of a community is where the future is won — and Tulsa’s got it. In these conversations, I shared that Tulsa to them is what Miami has long been to me.
To be sure, Miami and Tulsa are two different places. Miami is further along in becoming a center of innovation and entrepreneurship, and is fast graduating into the ranks of the global cities that attract professionals from around the world.
But as capital and talent become more mobile, cities and towns of all sizes have the chance to build the diverse, entrepreneurial and equitable communities we crave. Tulsa could well be a case study.
The effort is being spearheaded by the George Kaiser Family Foundation, a $5 billion foundation that has invested heavily in early childhood education and public spaces. This includes investing $250 million — and raising another $200 million — to create the nationally acclaimed Gathering Place, a 66-acre park now being expanded to nearly 100 acres. Recently, it’s also making a big push to build a vibrant, inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem in Tulsa.
They are doing it by standing up a range of initiatives and organizations to recruit people, upskill and nurture talent, and stir company-creation across the community.
- As remote work goes mainstream, it established Tulsa Remote, offering cash, co-working, and immediate connection to the community for new arrivals. Some 15,000 people have come to Tulsa in the last three years.
- To develop talent, it launched code schools like Holberton, which produces software engineers in 12 to 18 months. It aims to double the number of software engineers Oklahoma produces each year.
- To better connect employers and diverse job seekers, it started inTulsa. It established incubator spaces like 36 Degrees North, which promises no state taxes for ten years to startups that stay. It’s created venture arms, such as Atento Capital, to fund growing companies.
- Most importantly, it’s leaned into diversity as a key differentiator in the place where Black Wall Street was built. This includes Build in Tulsa, which is specifically focused on Black founders with the express aim of “fighting for the future of Black America.” More is coming soon.
Remarkably, a place that was home to one of our darkest chapters in U.S. history is increasingly becoming a source of light for our future. It’s inspiring to see a community rebuild like Tulsa has.
Next week, I’ll share more on what I learned from Tulsa — including what Miami can learn from the city.
As always, we want to hear from you. Email us at next@opportunity.miami or engage with us on social media. Please invite friends to subscribe to this newsletter here.
Hope to see you.
Matt Haggman
Opportunity Miami
@matthaggman
