Oklahoma has been a perpetual national embarrassment as of late. Between the embarrassment of being openly hateful towards homosexuals, and the actions of our governor Mary Fallin, we have made national news quite a bit lately. I will say not much of this comes as a surprise to a veteran Okie like me, I have after all lived here my whole life. Honestly, I love being an Oklahoman. However, this hate, this rage fueled expression of disgusting proportions, is not My Oklahoma.
My Oklahoma, the place where we wave to strangers at a 4 way stop; My Oklahoma, where when tragedy strikes, we band together to make a difference in the lives of people who lost something; My Oklahoma, where there are open skies and (mostly) open hearted people; My Oklahoma, the place where my friend's family's adopted me when I lost mine, and where someone is fairly likely to give you directions using the phrases: "y'all", "up the road a-ways", and maybe even "over yonder". My Oklahoma is a place where people from all walks of life gather to attend a local food truck rally, and where we can all get behind one basketball team, be it high school, college, or professional. My Oklahoma loves high school football. My Oklahoma is shaped like a pan, and generally only extends hatred towards the Texas Longhorns.
I realize that when President Barack Obama visited our "Great State", what he was shown was disgusting (not to mention, stupid. Oklahoma wasn't even part of the Confederacy). Especially with what has been going on with racism across America, to display the Confederate battle flag to our President, (who also happens to be a person of color) is just distasteful. It was wrong, and I do not agree with it. On behalf of all the people in Oklahoma who do NOT represent that Oklahoma, I am sorry. I am sorry that the interaction you saw represented this state in a way that I don't agree with. I am sorry that they represented us in a way that is so offensive to so many. I am sorry that you were subjected to the hideous behavior that these few people committed. Most of all, I am sorry that I have to go out into the world a proud Okie, and that I could forever carry the label that so few portrayed the actions of.
The Confederate battle flag represented a separate entity than the United States of America. The Confederacy represented hatred, and the oppression of the "inferior colored people" (—William T. Thompson (April 23, 1863), Daily Morning News) The men who decided that this was the issue they wanted to fight for, we're not what I see today when I look at my life in Oklahoma. Yes, our governor is a dipshit. Yes, there ARE racists here (systemically, they are everywhere). Yes, there are people here who Bible thump their way through any and all situations. There are also people here who love unconditionally. There are people here who represent the true spirit of America, the land of the free and the home of the brave. There are genuine people here, not everyone is a backwards redneck who doesn't understand that it does not mean what he thinks it means.
This is a small Okie blogger reaching out to say, we aren't all the same, and it will take time for some of them to understand, but we will all get there. We have to fight this fight together, because that's the only way we win.
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