Thursday, May 29, 2008

What IS wrong with Oklahoma?

I have friends in Oklahoma and am used to hearing about some of the ass-backwards things that go on down there. Having grown up in Texas, not far from the Oklahoma border, not much surprises me about the state. But the extreme measures that are being pushed there amazed even me.

The Republican-dominated Oklahoma legislature is defining the frontier of xenophobic immigration laws, anti-Muslim bigotry, gay bashing and encouragement of gun-toting students -- with Democratic legislators often too timid to resist.

Rep. Randy Terrill, Republican chairman of the Revenue and Taxation Committee, has emerged as a hero of the "protect our borders" crowd by authoring a law, known as HB1804, that makes it a felony even to give an illegal immigrant a ride.

You also can't provide education, health care and many other services to undocumented immigrants, including infants. And, police are required to check the immigration status of anyone "suspected" of being in this country illegally.

If you thought such a draconian measure might face stiff opposition -- or at least a drawn-out political battle -- you'd be wrong. The bill sailed through the Oklahoma House, 88-9, with 35 of the 44 Democrats joining the Republicans, and then passed the Senate on a 41-6 vote with two-thirds of the Democrats lining up with Republicans.

And before we pat ourselves on the back, talk to anyone from a marginalized community that lives in or comes from southern or eastern Oregon (or rural New York or Pennsylvania, for that matter. Pick a state, and then look at what goes on in its more rural areas).
And here is the rest of it.

1 comment:

brenda said...

I really appreciate you posting this, being from Oklahoma isnt something i'm proud of, I know that sounds bad, but people here need to get out of their caves and realize that its not the're place to judge anyone. If your lifestyle doesnt suit them your degraded for it. We all have the right to be who we are. I certainly wont change my lifestyle for anyone. Fighting for Human Rights is something I learned from a good friend, and I want to be a big part of that. Oklahoma isnt where I plan on spending my life, but I would still like to fight for the rights of others here, and anywhere else as far as that goes.