Someone wrote us this week, "We are not OKIES. They went to Califonia (California) during dust bowl. We are Oklahomans & insulted. signed all Oklahomans"
First of all -- I know it was not signed by ALL Oklahomans, because I know some Oklahomans that do not mind being called an "Okie" and are not insulted by the use of the term.
Second -- I have a question and wonder why some Oklahomans would be insulted? The only thing Oklahomans should be insulted about is the black-eye that the State Legislature has given Oklahoma globally by recently passing legislation that discriminates against Women Rights to choose.
The Great Depression / Dust Bowl Days
The Great Depression and Dust Bowl of the 1930's is a part of our Great Plains history that we should all remember, least we be condemned to repeat it!
I did a YouTube.com search for original video clips of the Dust Bowl era of the 1930's so we could pay homage to the "Worst of Hard Times" and to the Dust Bowl Refugees. We found a few videos to share with you all.
I have and shall always consider myself an "Okie" in a proud sense. I am a Northwest Oklahoma Okie, born and raised. I choose to remember our past history, looking and learning from those "Worst of Hard Times." This NW Okie shall not look upon those who left in the 1930's as quitters as some still do today.
If you know your history, it was not only Oklahoma that was affected by the drought / depression of the 1930's. The Texas panhandle, Western Kansas, Eastern Colorado, and Nebraska also felt the "Worst of Hard Times" back in the 1920's and 1930's. They were forced to leave their homes looking for any kind of work. Many headed West towards migrant jobs in California.
Yes! I shall always consider myself an "Okie" in the proudest of sense.