The policy was to require cardiac response plans in schools
I lost my husband, Derrick Shepard, to cardiac arrest when he was only 35. A former University of Oklahoma and NFL wide receiver, Derrick was the picture of health when he died.
Our son, Sterling, is now a professional football player, like his father, and throughout his childhood I thought about what would happen if he or one of his classmates or teammates went into cardiac arrest at school or practice. Would the people in the area know what to do?
More: Heart health: NFL, coach Denny Kellington at Capitol to push for AEDs and emergency plans in schools
When someone goes into cardiac arrest, every second counts. That’s why I’m joining the American Heart Association to advocate for public policies at the state and federal level that would save lives from cardiac arrest. Last month, Sterling and I traveled to the Capitol to meet with lawmakers about legislation requiring emergency plans in Oklahoma schools. I then went to Washington, DC, to send the same message to Congress.
Federal bills such as the HEARTS Act and the Access to AEDs Act would save lives by ensuring that elementary and secondary school students, along with teachers and sports volunteers, are trained in CPR and the use of automated external defibrillators (AEDs). These bills would also support schools in purchasing AEDs and formulating cardiac emergency response plans to respond to a cardiac emergency.
Together with cardiac arrest survivors, families who have also lost a loved one to cardiac arrest, and other advocates, we asked our representatives in Washington to act quickly and pass policies that will improve the chain of survival in schools. This would give families across the country peace of mind and spare others the fear of losing a loved one like we did.
– Cheri Shepard, Oklahoma City
The sole purpose of the Patriotism Not Pride Act is oppression
House Bill 3217, the “Patriotism Not Pride Act,” prohibits government agencies from displaying any form of LGBTQIA2S+ endorsement on state property. It also prohibits government agencies from using funds to promote, endorse, or participate in activities that recognize LGBTQIA2S+ individuals or Pride Month. This bill is one of several recently introduced in the Oklahoma Senate to regulate the rights of LGBTQIA2S+.
There is no purpose for this bill other than oppression. It follows the path of many others currently being promoted in Oklahoma, blatantly demonstrating bias for one point of view and bias against another. This bill proudly bears the controversial title “Patriotism, Not Pride,” exposing its true intentions. Who determines the definition of patriotism? How does pride’s support threaten or diminish it? The right to freedom of speech and expression are fundamental beliefs of this country and support for them is patriotic.
More: The Oklahoma Legislature is considering more than 50 bills focused on LGBTQ+ issues. What do they say?
Nowhere is it stated that patriotism means an alliance with Christian or conservative views, and nowhere can it be proven that promoting or supporting LGBTQIA2S+ values harms or threatens democracy. Many of our representatives in Oklahoma are speaking today about the threat of indoctrination or the potentially harmful impact LGBTQIA2S+ images can have on young children. Many argue that these ideals or images threaten Christian values.
Whether this is true or not, it is not a relevant argument, as Christian values are not the concern of legislators. Constitutional values and ideals are. Christian values are NOT synonymous with constitutional values and have no standing to be promoted as such. The only unconstitutional issue that needs to be addressed here is the apparent inability of our representatives to separate church and state.
The open blatant bias in the hearts and policies of Oklahoma’s representatives is a crisis that must be urgently addressed. There is no constitutional standing for the implementation of this bill and it opens a dangerous path to more oppressive acts in the name of false patriotism.
– Sarah Osborne, Tulsa
Oklahoma must stop targeting immigrants
As if we don’t have enough problems in our state without creating one like House Bill 4156. And since Governor Kevin Stitt is so focused on making us a top 10 state in all the wrong areas of state management, of course he has signed. . During my career as a nurse, I have been fortunate to work with many Spanish-speaking families. I know many of the parents were undocumented at the time, but most of their children were born in the US, usually in Texas or Oklahoma. These were hardworking parents who had a vested interest in making sure they did their best to get their children the health care they needed. I felt very honored to have been able to contribute to their efforts in this regard, as well as to their efforts to build a good and prosperous life in Oklahoma.
More: Former OSBI agent on HB 4156: Nothing in the bill warrants an arrest for impermissible occupancy
Why the Republican legislature feels so threatened and threatened by immigrants – whether they are documented or not – is beyond me. Their contributions to our communities in this state have been important – just ask the communities where Hispanics have rejuvenated small towns struggling with population loss.
If the border issues were that important to them, they should have focused on getting our Republican U.S. Representatives to pass Senator (James) Lankford’s bill. If our Attorney General is so concerned about criminals in the marijuana trade in our state, perhaps he would have been better served by pressuring the Legislature to provide more resources for regulation and enforcement as they continue to operate in these areas have shown gross negligence in setting up the legislature. laws/regulations for this new industry. I know legislators will say these problems have been solved, but we need more than new regulations; you need people and appropriate institutions.
This obviously means more money to tackle this problem. The governor keeps telling us we have a surplus. Rather than trying to play a policy that will benefit very few with an income tax cut, which will surely be regretted at a later date, our state should act responsibly to provide the necessary infrastructure and resources to needs of Oklahoma, rather than targeting immigrants.
–Penny Barber, Edmond
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Letters on cardiac response plans, ‘blatant bias’ in Oklahoma bills
