McCurtain County in far southeast Oklahoma has become a tourism hotbed over the last several decades. So many tourists from north Texas come to the area each week, the area has earned the nickname of the “Dallas-Fort Worth Hamptons.” But the region's growing reputation took a gut punch this week when the local newspaper identified several local elected officials, including the sheriff, in an audio recording. In it, the elected officials discuss killing two journalists and lynching Black people. Many residents say the racist remarks are a throwback to a bygone era. But they still worry about the negative repercussions the incident will have on the community’s reputation.
