ABSTRACT
Analysis of the John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park in the USA identifies its value for peace education. This park centers African-American history in Oklahoma and marks the losses from the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre that occurred when a mass of White Tulsans set fire to a vibrant all-Black neighborhood, burned it to the ground, and injured and killed hundreds of Black citizens. Using site visits, material analysis, observations, and embodied walkography, we consider how memorials and museums such as this park can mark, acknowledge, and heighten awareness of historical violence, foster spaces to bear witness, nourish community, and invite healing and reconciliation vital for transforming a troubled world. As so much of our learning and teaching practices occur outside of formal schools, we must imagine and develop peace pedagogies and sites for peace education alongside those in formal education. Emphasizing agency, resilience, and hope, this park commemorates locally grounded violences while connecting to a broader history of direct and structural violences against African-American people. We conclude with pedagogical activities and questions that visitors to memorials elsewhere can apply in their contexts.
