Black Friday - Podcast
The momentous hour of confrontation in downtown Oklahoma City, Black Friday, October 31, 1969. Armed state troopers and police quietly ring 1,500 protestors at City Hall to ensure the peace. Photo Jim Argo. Courtesy Oklahoma Publishing Co. and Oklahoma Historical Society.
Journey with John back to “Black Friday,” the breathtaking confrontation on Halloween Day 1969 in downtown OKC over the historic Sanitation Workers Strike. This double header podcast peels back the curtain on the day that could have seen one of Oklahoma’s greatest tragedies, but wound up witnessing one of its greatest feats of selfless heroism.
Join John and KTOK/iHeartRadio star Gwin Faulconer-Lippert and relive “Black Friday.” These are the 91st and 92nd episodes of our original OKLAHOMA GOLD! radio program! Thank you Atwoods Stores for making it possible! Go HERE to listen to them all! Future episodes explore more great heroes, events, and movements of Oklahoma History.
Legendary Oklahoma cartoonist Jim Lange humorously depicted how as the 1969 Oklahoma City sanitation strike wore on, the experience on the “home front” with reduced garbage pickup service grew increasingly “offensive.” Courtesy Oklahoma Publishing Co. and Oklahoma Historical Society.
High school teacher, NAACP Youth leader, and 1969 OKC sanitation strike spokesperson Clara Luper, jailed along with 35 others after sitting down in front of a truck attempting to leave for its garbage pickup route. Photo Associated Press. Courtesy Oklahoma Publishing Co. and Oklahoma Historical Society.
A dramatic private encounter between Black Muslim leader Theodore G. X. (left) and longtime community leader Frank Cox held dramatic implications for the of history of Oklahoma City. Photos Don Tullous, Joe Miller. Courtesy Oklahoma Publishing Co. and Oklahoma Historical Society.
Bible in one hand, megaphone in the other, Pastor W. K. Jackson speaks “apples of gold in settings of silver” on Black Friday 1969 and helps deliver Oklahoma City from disaster. Photo Jim Argo. Courtesy Oklahoma Publishing Co. and Oklahoma Historical Society.
Oklahoma City sanitation strike hero Stanton K. Young and his daughter. Of Young’s many contributions to Oklahoma through his long and accomplished life, crafting a Solomonic, 11th-hour settlement of that contentious event with Rev. W. K. Jackson endures among the greatest. Courtesy Oklahoma Publishing Co. and Oklahoma Historical Society.
Many thanks to Atwoods Stores, a farm and ranch supply company based in Enid, Oklahoma, for their support of the Red River Institute of History and OKLAHOMA GOLD! Please support them as you are able! Wherever you are, you can order online from thousands of quality products on their terrific website HERE. Atwoods also has 66 stores in 5 states: Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas. In addition to farm and ranch supplies, Atwoods stores sell clothing, lawn and garden items, tools, hardware, automotive supplies, sporting goods, pet supplies, firearms, and seasonal items.
