The conspiracy of blood and oil that upturned America’s justice system

? One page out of America’s history book is enough to expose the nation’s fervent appetite for crimes born out of colonial greed and racial hatred. One particularly forgotten chapter — dubbed the bloodiest chapter in American crime history — amplifies this, resurrected through David Grann’s 2017 award-winning book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI. The tragedy of the Native Americans under colonial Britain is well-known and openly documented, yet the conspiracy of the 1920s Osage tribe murders unfolded in far more chilling and covert ways.

The world’s richest people per capita. When vast oil reserves were discovered beneath the land of Oklahoma — the state that the Osage nation fled to after their native territories were stripped away from them — the land quickly became the target of oil miners who poured USD mns into its leases. The unexpected development made headlines and the Osage thus led abundant, wealthy lives to many people’s envy.

The Osage Reign of Terror. Through extensive research and deep historical references, Grann traces the story of Osage woman Mollie Burkhart, and her three sisters Rita, Anna, and Minnie. When Anna is found dead, shot in the head, not long after the suspicious death of another townsman Charles Whitehorn, confusion grows and investigations lead nowhere.

Grann walks us through a rich timeline of interconnected historical events, detailing the efforts of different investigators, and sharing testimonies from the Osage tribe. We follow as the investigation eventually moves from Oklahoma’s weak and corrupt law enforcement to the Bureau of Investigation.

The book provides a compelling account of America’s justice system and crime prosecution, from the lawless “Cowboys” era to the landmark formation of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 1935. Grann exposes the closed circle of corruption and compliance that modern American law enforcement was built on.

Grann makes sure to highlight the prevalent tone of prejudice and racism during that time, often quoting from biased news stories and pointing to hypocritical and stereotypical comments made by white Americans. Killers of the Flower Moon is a hard-to-put-down showpiece of true crime that reminds us of the importance of truth, justice, and liberation.

WHERE TO FIND IT- You can find the paperback at Diwan.