Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2020/Fall/105i/Section 50/Buster Youngwolfe

Buster Youngwolfe
Born	1912 Oklahoma
Died	unknown unknown
Cause of death	unknown

Biography

Early Life

Buster Youngwolfe was an Oklahoma native and a part of the Cherokee tribe that lived throughout the eighteenth century. He went through his early-years with very little education although he was known to be an avid reader and respected among those close to him. He had trouble holding onto jobs because he had reckless tendencies and an impulsive personality. He grew up in the slums of Northern Tulsa and the part in which he lived, a neighborhood called Dawson, only had 10 houses nearby. This small area allowed for a close and connected community in which the inhabitants would spend much of their time together. The majority of Youngwolfe's documented life lasted during his early to mid-twenties because of the accusation that would change his life and legacy. However, he would spend almost a year during this time in prison awaiting his trial.

Accusation

In 1933 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Youngwolfe was accused and admitted to killing a young female after raping her. The girl, Phyllis Jean Warren, was a neighbor of Youngwolfe’s and was friends with his nephews which gave reason to believe this in fact happened and Youngwolfe was the victim. Youngwolfe later revealed that he was being forced by the authorities to make this confession and had no part in this accusation. None of the white population that discriminated against the Native Americans believed Youngwolfe except for one public defender, Elliot Howe. Howe's goal was to prove Youngwolfe’s innocence against the racist and corrupt legal system of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Trial

When Youngwolfe had his day in court nearly a year after the initial accusation, him and Howe were aware of the difficulties they were facing because Youngwolfe had previously pleaded guilty to this crime. If the verdict of Youngwolfe's trial was guilty, he would face the death penalty that was enforced in Oklahoma at the time for committing murder. Howe knew he was up against much more skilled, experienced, and respected attorney's but had spent much of his time crafting an alibi for Youngwolfe for the night of the murder.

During the trial, Howe explained how Youngwolfe was last seen with Warren around 6:00 PM before he went out drinking with several neighbors, including Warren's parents. One of his drunken friends got into a scuffle with a police officer around 8:30 PM and this built evidence for the alibi because the officer had reported seeing Youngwolfe during this confrontation. At one point during Youngwolfe's next several hours of drinking at different bars, Youngwolfe went to the police station to pay off one of his neighbors speeding tickets at 10:30 PM. These two pieces of evidence where the authorities had confirmed sightings of Youngwolfe were essential for his case because the murder was said to have happened between 8-10 PM.

Howe was able to prove Youngwolfe's innocence through the evidence he gathered to create Youngwolfe's alibi. Despite Tulsa's biased and corrupt legal system they were up against, Juror, Captain Hoyt's final verdict established Youngwolfe's innocence in the eyes of the law as he said, "(Howe) was telling the truth."

Post-Trial Life

After the Trial, Youngwolfe would temporarily enjoy his freedom but would have frequent encounters with the law throughout his life. Although he visited jail several times, he was never charged for anything more serious than traffic violations and theft. He died inside his home in 1988 at 76 years old.

Social Issues

Racism in Oklahoma

Throughout the twentieth century, racism was extremely prevalent in Oklahoma. African-American and Native American groups were subject to this unfair treatment enforced by the more powerful white population. One of the most prevalent ways minority groups were subject to this racism was through education. Oklahoma residents would almost always vote to segregate schools by race due to the First Territorial Legislature Law that was passed in 1897 which resulted in lower quality of education for minorities and many of these children received little to none of their early years in school. In 1915, Senate Bill Number One implemented laws that would segregate hospitals, restaurants, pay-phone booths, cemeteries, and housing between the white population and colored people.

During the early to mid twentieth century, Native Americans in Oklahoma were generally accepted as slightly superior to African-Americans but far inferior to the white population. The white population would refer to all Native Americans as "Paiutes". This was intended to be a melting pot term that encompassed all Oklahoma tribes but was essentially a derogatory term for the Natives. Native Americans were still subject to the systematic racism that had been established several decades prior in schools, segregated neighborhoods, and limited opportunities throughout these years.

In today's society, racism is still present towards Native Americans. Many companies use images or terms through their advertising techniques that are offensive to those with Native ancestry. The most notable of these was the team name Washington Redskins that was abandoned till 2020. There are still corporations such as Big Chief Sugar Company that use offensive visuals of Native Americans as their brand image. Many white Oklahomans claim to be part Native American because it gives them a sense of diversity. However, those that identify as a pure bred Native American are not treated with the same respect, fairness, or honor that the white population receives.

Legal System Corruptions

Oklahoma in the early to mid-twentieth century was one of many historical examples of a corrupt legal system. Minority groups were subject to different types of unfair treatment by the powerful, white leaders of these organizations. Members of these minority groups were subject to threats from the authorities to make false confessions and were given unfair rulings when they were in court. Police officers brutally assaulted Native American and African-American men during this time and frequent mass killings occurred during these unfortunate years for members of these minority groups.

Abuse of power has been the most common form of legal system corruptions throughout history. This includes bribes throughout the legal process but also instances in which judges were threatened by more powerful individuals to make a certain ruling. People in the upper class of societies would usually have connections within the legal system that could create unfair rulings. Whether these inequalities were done as a favor, because of a bribe, or to satisfy someone else's demand, corruptions within the legal system have been seen throughout history and almost always target minority races

References

[1] Cates, Hunter Howe. Oklahoma's Atticus : An Innocent Man and the Lawyer Who Fought for Him, Bison Books, 2019. ProQuest Ebook Central, 3-4, https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/lib/unc/detail.action?docID=5894310.

[2] Ibid., 129.

[3] Ibid., 72-75.

[4] Ibid., 12-16.

[5]Ibid., 129-131.

[6]Ibid., 131-135.

[7]Ibid., 179.

[8]Ibid., 193-196.

[9] James M. Smallwood, “Segregation,” The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=SE006.

[10] Russel, Steve. "Oklahoma Indians Braving the Racist Culture". Indian Country Today, 2017 https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/oklahoma-indians-braving-the-racist-culture-2h1gv4eu9kao0XFSoCQ2hQ

[11] Debra Merskin (2001) Winnebagos, Cherokees, Apaches, and Dakotas: The Persistence of Stereotyping of American Indians in American Advertising Brands, Howard Journal of Communications, 12:3, 159-169, DOI: 10.1080/106461701753210439

[12] Priks, Mikael. "Judiciaries in corrupt societies". Economics of Governance 12 (1): 75-88. doi: 10.1007/s101-010-0082-y

[13] Garcia-Sayan, Diego. "Corruption, Human Rights, and Judicial Independence". UNODC. July 2017 https://www.unodc.org/dohadeclaration/en/news/2018/04/corruption--human-rights--and-judicial-independence.html