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Senator Kelly Haney poses with the Guardian
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STATUE RAISING
June 7, 2002
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"I
am the Guardian. Some think my journey
began on May 2, 2002,
when I was taken from
the Crucible Foundry in
Norma, Oklahoma and
arrived here in Oklahoma
City... and then on the
State Capitol about a
week ago... but my
journey began in the
1830's with the passage of the Indian Removal Act. Thousands and thousands of us were marched half-way across this country; thousands died along the way. But we rebuilt our lives, our families and our nations here.
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Through the years we were joined by others; their ancestors came from every corner of the world; but they came here and joined as we all worked to build a new life in this land of red earth.
The years to come were not easy; there were wars; wars pitting brother against brother, tribe against tribe, and ultimately nations against nations. Throughout the years, thousands of Oklahomans have given their lives defending this country; they died in Europe, in Asia and in mountains and deserts thousands of miles away; but they all died so that we could live free, they fought for their fellow Oklahomans, they fought for America. I will guard their memory always.
Our young state has faced many adversities; for some it was too much, and they moved on … but for most of us, this red earth was now our home, even when the very earth itself seemed to turn against us, we refused to be moved; we survived the dustbowl that will never be forgotten by those who lived through it; we have survived floods and storms, and in 1999 one of the worst tornadoes ever recorded on the face of the planet. But we survived; and we reached out our hands and helped one another and we stood our ground. And when hate and evil struck our state in 1995 at the Murrah Federal Building; we proved to the world how strong our spirit was; and we showed that good is always stronger than evil. We stood our ground.
And soon, I will be raised to the top of this Capitol Building…inside are many guardians of this state. Our Governor, our legislators, our judges; they all are charged with a very sacred task of being the guardians of Oklahoma…a state that is nearing its first centennial. And I will stand guard here, over our great state, over our majestic land, over our values. My lance pierces my legging and is planted in the ground. I will not be moved from my duty, from my love of Oklahoma and all of its people; people who came from far and near, people who have withstood adversities and hardships, and still stand strong and proud. I will stand my ground, and I will not be moved. From this day on, I will stand guard, I will stand strong and be proud of Oklahoma, our home.”
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Site provided by Frankfurt-Short-Bruza (FSB) Architects / Engineers of Record for the State Capitol Dome
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