Oklahoma Standard of kindness, compassion should apply to more than just disasters
We must love our neighbors as ourselves, enough to respect who they are and the choices they make. The Oklahoma Standard offers inspiration to do it. Nancy E. Snow, a professor of philosophy at the University of Kansas, argues that the "Oklahoma Standard" of kindness and compassion should apply to more than just disasters like the recent spate of tornadoes in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Standard, a statewide initiative promoting a culture of caring citizens, was born out of the community's response to the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Despite this, Snow argues that there are challenges beyond natural disasters, including prejudice, fear and hatred, which are often masked by religious beliefs. She argues that religious beliefs promote anti-transition and restrictions on women's choices, such as women's subservience to men.
Published : 10 months ago by Nancy Snow, The Oklahoman in Environment
Oklahoma Standard of kindness, compassion should apply to more than just disasters | Opinion
From March 14 through May 23 of this year, 91 tornadoes ripped through Oklahoma. According to the National Weather Service, six people died and 34 were injured. Sulphur was especially hard hit, but less than 48 hours later, more than 100 people were at work cleaning up. Volunteers came from as far away as Norman, Ada and Davis.
More: A Sulphur man reconsiders his saying of 'if a tornado gets me, it's how I was meant to go'
Moral lessons are to be learned from those who live in “Tornado Alley.” The willingness of Oklahomans to help one another when misfortune strikes signals care, love and resilience ― the ability to come back stronger after a setback. All of this speaks to the power of the “Oklahoma Standard.” According to Oklahoma Standard website, maintained by the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum, “The Oklahoma Standard is a statewide initiative preserving and promoting a culture of caring citizens by encouraging Acts of Service, Honor, and Kindness.” The Standard was born out of the community’s response to the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. The website also states that the spirit of helping displayed on that occasion “... has been part of the DNA of the state ever since it was founded.” My experience of living in Oklahoma bears this out. Never have I encountered kinder, more generous people than Oklahomans.
Yet Oklahomans face numerous challenges that extend beyond rebuilding after storms. A rhetoric of hatred often pervades political discourse. Sixty anti-trans bills impacting health care, civil rights and education, among other areas, were being tracked in Oklahoma this year. In January 2024, state Rep. Dusty Deevers filed a bill to end no-fault divorce.
These and other legal initiatives to limit the rights of people to be who they are and make their own choices are directly contrary to the values embodied in the Oklahoma Standard. These values include kindness, care and compassion. Why are such responses associated only with disaster relief? Why are they not also invoked to help others live their best lives, especially when the rights of people are being threatened?
Threats to people’s lives include not only natural disasters, but also prejudice, fear and hatred. These negative attitudes are sometimes masked by religious beliefs. Anti-trans and LGBTQ+ bias is promoted “in the name of” religion. Restrictions on women’s choices, including their alleged subservience to men, often rest on questionable interpretations of religious texts.
Challenging the beliefs that motivate these prejudices and restrictions isn’t easy, but there is a deeper message that religion offers to us all. We must love our neighbors as ourselves, and love them enough to respect who they are and the choices they make. The decision to orient ourselves toward others with love and respect requires humility ― the humility to admit, or at least to entertain ― the idea that our beliefs about others could be wrong. This is a challenge that cuts to the core of our being. The Oklahoma Standard offers the inspiration to meet it.
Nancy E. Snow is a professor of philosophy at the University of Kansas. She formerly was a philosophy professor at the University of Oklahoma and director of the Institute for the Study of Human Flourishing.
Topics: Social-ESG, Environment-ESG