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In the days after the Oklahoma City bombing 28 years ago this week, We will never forget was a phrase that took hold in a community rocked by the worst homegrown act of terrorism the nation had ever experienced.

168 people, including 19 children and one OU student were killed. This week, as Oklahomans honor and commemorate them, some OU professors wonder if the nation at large, and Oklahomans in particular, have, in fact, forgotten the roots of what happened on April 19, 1995.

Three weeks ago, former U.S. President Donald Trump held a campaign rally in Waco, Texas. The rally took place during the anniversary of a government siege of illegally manufactured machine guns against David Koresh, leader of the Branch Davidians. What took place was a 51-day standoff that left nearly 80 people dead.

The Waco massacre fed into the narrative that the government intended to infringe on the Second Amendment right to bear arms. During the rally, Trump uttered several dog whistles, vowing retribution and saying, I am your warrior, I am your justice, in an effort to adhere to an audience that has historically supportedanti-government rhetoric.

Timothy McVeigh, a United States Army veteran, represented the disgruntled American who felt alienated from society. His attack in Oklahoma City served to be an atrocity that other extremists sought to replicate.

In the 28 years since the attack, the Department of Homeland Security has identified hundreds of homegrown acts of domestic terrorism. Oklahoma in particular has seen a surge in white supremacist incidents, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

McVeigh witnessed the government siege in Waco confirming his belief that the government intended to disarm people like him. April 19 became a significant date for right-wing extremists as it marks both the ending of the Waco standoff in 1993 and the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995.

As Wednesday marked the 28th anniversary of the bombing, OU professors examined how white supremacist values and other far-right ideologies led to the tragedy.

On April 19, 1995, McVeigh bombed the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, executing the biggest homegrown attack in U.S. history. The U.S Department of Justice linked several far-right ideologies and incidents to McVeighs motivation for the bombing, including the 1992 siege at Ruby Ridge and the 1993 siege in Waco, Texas.

Michael Givel, an OU political science professor, said the sieges fed into the ultra-right conspiracy fantasies of the government attempting to take guns from Americans.

This is what Timothy McVeigh was enraged about, agencies that are there in and around the Branch Davidian compound. The idea that these were agents of the evil cabal that are out to get the good people, Givel said.

McVeigh was in attendance at the Waco siege as a spectator and sold pro-gun merchandise to crowds that gathered on a hill three miles from the standoff.

He was also a fan of the infamous Turner Diaries, Givel said, a dystopian novel written in 1978 by a Neo-Nazi, depicting a world where the government has confiscated all guns and minorities enact anti-white laws. According to the Anti-Defamation League, an anti-hate organization, the Turner Diaries has historically served as a guidebook for white supremacist organizations.

According to Givel, a fear of racial mixing is one of the reasons far-right individuals fall into extremism.

There is a permanency to this threat to the supposed wholesome values of (white men). Sexuality, particularly patriarchy, and male dominance play a very prominent role in this, Givel said. That's part of what people are saying when they want to go back to a mythic past of white male dominance.

The ideas of white supremacy may have operated as the precursor to McVeigh's descent into extremism and the dozens of far-right domestic attacks that were followed by people who shared the same values, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

Young white men who believe Christianity is synonymous with white American culture are the ones falling into white supremacist ideology, Samuel Perry, an OU sociology professor, said.

In recent years, deadly attacks in Buffalo, New York; Charleston, South Carolina; and Pittsburghshootings were all committed by shooters who viewed the white race as under threat.

In May 2022, a white 18-year-old gunman walked into a supermarket and shot 13 people and killed 10 in Buffalo. Of the 13 people shot, 10 were Black. An alleged manifesto written by the gunman online revealed he believed in the Great Replacement Theory, a conspiracy that white people are being strategically replaced by minorities.

The January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in 2021 also serves as an example of far-right distrust of the government. Supporters of Trump stormed the Capitol building after being told the government lied to them about election results.

What ties them all together is a perception that they are being persecuted, and not just they personally are being persecuted, but people like them, people like us are being persecuted, that is white, American patriot, Second Amendment loving Christian people, and that the government is doing it, Perry said.

Perry said some disillusioned white men have been under the impression that the government is out to get them, fueling some to turn to white supremacist views. He said many have also adopted a bastardized version of Christianity to use as a dog whistle in rallying others who feel the same way.

They're conspiratorial, and they believe there are all these kinds of secretive attempts and plots to take away their guns and the government has been plotting against good God-fearing American patriots and this is a kind of plot from the left, who is in control of everything, Perry said.

In 2023, there have been at least 160 mass shootings in the U.S., according to the Gun Violence Archive. Earlier in April, OU was victim to a false report of an active shooter on campus.

In court, McVeigh said the government fears people owning guns because it limits its control. He said the U.S. was slowly turning into a socialist country and more people needed to arm themselves to be ready for an attack.

According to the Small Arms Survey database, the U.S. has more guns than people. Despite the number of guns, the idea that the government is seeking to physically force firearms out of peoples hands is ever-present in right-wing circles, according to Perry.

It is the result of propaganda and it's the result of intentional campaigning by the (National Rifle Association) and other right-wing organizations, Perry said. If you're the kind of person who feels like the government, the leftist, socialist government, the elites and the people in power are out to get you, then you're going to claim what you feel like is your lone chance of defending yourself and that is the Second Amendment.

According to a study conducted by Perry in February, the further Americans fall on the right side of the political spectrum, the more likely they are to value the Second Amendment over any other amendment.

The Oklahoma City bombing remains the biggest homegrown attack in U.S. history 28 years later. In 2020, the Anti-Defamation League reported McVeigh's anti-government ideals are surging in new white supremacist organizations.

Just two years later, the Anti-Defamation League reported there were over 169 white supremacist incidents in Oklahoma, a 164 percent increase from 2021. One of the most prevalent white supremacist groups in the state is the Oklahoma Aryan Brotherhood, a white supremacist prison gang.

Givel said America's problem with extremism is that the U.S. has never properly dealt with its racist history and that its inability to be honest with the past has spurred delusion in people like McVeigh.

This society has a lot of work to do, Givel said. There's a view of history that there were no perpetrators of any kind of evil actions in the past and from a historical point of view (that) is nonsense.

On Wednesday, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland released a statement recognizing the lives lost during the bombing and commemorating the resilience the Oklahoma City community demonstrated after the event. Garland led the investigation and prosecution after the bombing.

He said the U.S. Department of Justice recommits taking action to prevent another event like the Oklahoma City bombing. The department remains vigilant in the face of the threat posed by domestic terrorism and remains committed to holding the people who perpetrate such attacks accountable, he said.

We will never forget what happened in Oklahoma City on April 19, Garland said. We will never stop telling and retelling the story of that day, and of how the Oklahoma City community responded to hatred and division with compassion and unity. And we will never stop working to honor the memories of those we lost.

This story was edited by Alexia Aston, Jazz Wolfe and Karoline Leonard. Nikkie Aisha copy edited this story.

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28 years after Oklahoma City bombing, OU professors examine ... - The Oklahoma Daily

As of Friday, six people had been arrested in Saturdays birthday party shooting in Dadeville which killed four and injured at least 32. On Tuesday, Alabama lawmakers held a moment of silence for the victims. When reacting to the shooting, Republicans and Democrats had very different responses.

Democrats are talking about guns and gun control. Republicans are talking more about crime, said Todd Stacy, host of Capitol Journal on Alabama Public Television.

Stacy discussed that and other actions in the legislature this week.

During an already scheduled meeting of the Legislative Black Caucus in Birmingham, three members of the group held a press conference to respond to the shooting.

Some of it was specific. A lot of it was not specific, Stacy said. You hear the phrase, We need to do something.

Democratic Sen. Marika Coleman of Pleasant Grove spoke about her red flag law which shes introduced in several legislative sessions. Such laws establish a legal process to remove guns from people who are deemed to be a threat to themselves or others. Democrats also promoted an assault weapons ban.

Stacy said as details about the Dadeville shooting dripped out, it became clear this was not a lone gunman with a high-powered firearm and the traditional Democratic proposals would not have prevented the incident.

Republicans are talking about bills to strengthen crime penalties, sentencing, going after illegal guns. Stacy said. Theres a gang violence bill that the Senate Judiciary Committee passed this week.

Some policies, such as red flag laws, do find broad support but can get blocked in conservative legislatures around the country. Stacy said thats not always the case and points to Florida, which is trending further to the right, but passed a such a law in the wake of the Parkland school shooting.

When I talk to Republican lawmakers and prosecutors, they say they arent necessarily opposed to the concept. But they all say the devils in the details, Stacy said. You do have some Second Amendment issues. You have some Fourth Amendment issues. If you took a blind poll of folks in the legislature, I bet it would be pretty popular. But yes, whenever youre talking about guns, Republicans get very touchy about it. Thats just a political reality.

A package of four economic incentive bills dubbed the game plan by Gov. Kay Ivey is now law. Ivey signed the bills during a Thursday afternoon ceremony. The programs would have expired if lawmakers didnt reauthorize the package. Stacy said that forced lawmakers to update and reconsider the incentives.

The centerpiece of the package is a bill that reauthorizes and expands the Alabama Jobs Act and gives tax credits for capital investments and payroll rebates for job creation. The program is the states primary economic recruitment tool.

The legislation authorizes the program for another five years and incrementally increases the cap on incentives from $350 million for 2022 to $475 million for 2027. It would also establish a new $10 million in incentives for tourism projects such as amusement parks, resorts, water parks and aquariums.

The package includes incentives for tech startups, particularly for minority owners and those in rural areas and incorporates a transparency provision.

That would require that every incentive that is used for a project be posted online for everybody to see. Thats certainly something new in the economic development realm, Stacy said.

Ivey signed a bill into law Tuesday which requires hospitals and nursing homes to allow certain in-person visits, even during a pandemic.

This is obviously a remnant of COVID as so many people were frustrated with the hospital and nursing home policies that kept loved ones from being able to visit and be with their loved ones, in some cases while they were dying, Stacy said.

Under the law, patients would designate an essential caregiver who would be allowed two hours of daily visitation. It would also require facilities to allow visitation for end-of-life situations, childbirth, pediatric patients and when patients need additional support for things like making major decisions or help with eating and drinking.

Stacy said the bill was developed in consultation with the healthcare industry.

Theyre on board with it, with the understanding that if the federal government says no visitation, theyre going to have to follow the federal government, Stacy said.

Wednesday night brought the return of a tradition to Montgomery the legislative softball game.

House members took on the Senate while appellate judges served as umpires. For the second year in a row, the Senate came out on top.

It was a great time raising money for tornado victims in Selma, Stacy said. Theres a lot of arguing that goes on in the statehouse, a lot of back-and-forth, a lot of serious topics, so its kind of nice to be able to blow off steam down at the ballpark.

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Includes reporting from the Associated Press

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Republicans and Democrats split over response to Sweet 16 party shooting - WBHM

2024 presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy angered "CNN This Morning" host Don Lemon during a debate on gun rights for Black Americans while on-air.

Duting the heated exchange, Lemon took offense to Ramaswamys statements at an NRA conference last week about Democrats in the South instituting gun laws to prevent African Americans from protecting their newfound rights in the post-Civil War era.

Lemon reduced Ramaswamys point to a declaration that the Civil War was fought merely to give Black people gun rights and berated him for it, telling him the statement "insulted" him as a Black American.

DON LEMON'S PATHETIC APOLOGY FOR SEXIST REMARKS SPARKS EVEN MORE FURY INSIDE CNN: F-----G A--HOLE

CNNs Don Lemon and 2024 presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy debate the Civil War and Second Amendment. (Screenshot/CNN)

The CNN host further told Ramaswamy that he had no right to talk about the experience of Black people in America because hes not Black.

Ramaswamy pushed back and insisted that Lemon was misunderstanding his point. He also argued that both men should be able to talk about the issue regardless of their skin color.

During the heated crosstalk, Lemon also snapped at his producers who were apparently distracting him over his earpiece.

The intense live debate came after the hosts played a moment from Ramaswamys speech to the NRA in Indianapolis. During the clip, the businessman and presidential candidate addressed the crowd, saying, "I want you to raise your hand if you know when the first anti-gun laws were passed in this country. Raise your hand if you do. 1865."

He continued, saying, "We fought a civil war in this country to give Black Americans the equal protection under the law that we failed to secure them in 1776. But then you wanna know what happened? Southern states passed anti-gun laws that stopped Black people from owning guns. The Democrat Party, then as in now, wanted to put them back in chains."

After clarifying to co-host Poppy Harlow that he meant that modern Democratic Party policies (he mentioned former President Lyndon B. Johnsons "Great Society") are bad for African Americans much like those post-Civil War gun laws, Lemon stepped in, voicing some major disagreement with Ramaswamys statement.

He cut in, saying, "I dont really see what one has to do with the other and using the Civil War to talk about Black Americans that war was not fought for Black people to have guns."

Ramaswamy clarified his stance, saying, "That war was fought for Black people to have freedoms in this country. Actually, thats why the Civil War was fought."

"Actually, a funny fact is Black people did not get to enjoy the other freedoms until their Second Amendment rights were secured," he said.

Lemon interjected again, "But Black people still arent allowed to enjoy the freedoms as well in this country."

Ramaswamy dismissed that claim outright, declaring, "I disagree with you on that Don I think youre doing a disservice to this country by failing to recognize the fact that we have equality before the laws here."

DON LEMON SPOTTED ON THE BEACH AFTER PHONING IN APOLOGY TO CNN COLLEAGUES OVER SEXIST NIKKI HALEY COMMENTS

Republican presidential candidate and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy speaks to the Merrimack County Republicans at an event in Manchester, New Hampshire on April 13, 2023. (Paul Steinhauser)

Getting a little flustered, Lemon tried to shut down Ramaswamy by claiming he doesnt have the requisite skin color to make such a statement. The anchor replied, "Well, OK. When you are in Black skin and you live in this country, then you can disagree with me."

The candidate shot back, saying, "Don, I think we have to be able to talk about these issues in the open regardless of the color of our skin."

"I think for you to compare 1865 and 1964 I think its insulting to Black people. Its insulting to me as an African American. I dont want to sit here and argue with you because its infuriating for you to put those things together," Lemon said.

He then declared, "Its not right, your telling of history is wrong." Ramaswamy protested, asking what exactly was wrong, to which Lemon replied, "Youre making people think that the Civil War was fought only for Black people to get guns."

Lemon called Ramaswamys talking points "reductive," while the guest shot back that the hosts interpretation of the NRA speech was "reductive and actually insulting."

As Ramaswamy continued, Lemon scolded his producers, who were apparently distracting him on his earpiece during the debate. He snapped, "Hang on, please. I cannot keep a thought if you guys are talking in my ear."

The debate continued for another minute or so before Lemon concluded, "The fact that I find insulting is that you are sitting here telling an African American about the rights and what you find insulting about the way I live, the skin I live in every day. And I know the freedoms that Black people dont have in this country, and that Black people do have."

Ramaswamy protested, stating, "I think we should be able to express our views regardless of the color of our skin. We should have this debate without me regarding you as a Black man."

CNN's Don Lemon. (CNN This Morning)

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"I think its insulting that youre sitting here whatever ethnicity you are splaining to me about what its like to be Black in America. Im sorry," Lemon said.

The candidate responded, "Im an Indian American, and Im proud of it."

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Vivek Ramaswamy angers Don Lemon in debate over civil war, Second Amendment: 'It's infuriating' - Fox News

We must take stock of the landscape and acknowledge an irrefutable reality: There are millions of Americans for whom avoidable deathswhether from guns or a pandemic for which a no-cost, life-preserving vaccine is availableare acceptable, and too many of these millions vote Republican. There are Republicans with whom I once socialized who have acknowledged this to me privately. These are highly educated and highly credentialed people, who work in industries that are far more regulated than the firearm industry. They still believe a Republican is always preferable to a Democrat. This is what political traumatization wreaks: You learn to accept needless death and become indifferent to, if not defend, politically motivated violence, whether its an insurrection at the Capitol or a punch-up at a school board meeting.

We can trace the damage to four words in the Second Amendment: Shall not be infringed. It is these four words that have turned so many of our schools, our banks, our places of worship, our malls, our movie theaters, our workplaces, our Fourth of July parades, our bars and nightclubs, ourreally, just fill in the blankinto blood-splattered abattoirs.

This is where the plot is lost, over four words that denude the Second Amendment of any modern-day contextual value and meaning. Four words useful only in a cloddish defense of guns as instruments in a holy war against imaginary boogeymen: pedophiles, sycophants of Satan, Communist plants, and covert Islamic agitants born in Kenya. Shall not be infringed, because the culture war will yield a new phantasmic threat tomorrow, against whom the GOPs traumatized foot soldiers must stand their ground.

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I Carry a Firearm Every Day. Yes, the Second Amendment Is Killing Us - The New Republic

Former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who served Illinois 11th Congressional District and later the 16th from 2011 to early this year, is one of the Republican Partys most significant truth tellers. Kinzinger is now a political commentator. In his blistering farewell address to Congress in December, Kinzinger said: Where Republicans once believed that limited government meant lower taxes and more autonomy, today, limited government means inciting violence against government officials.

On Monday night, Kinzinger spoke in Chicago at a meeting organized by The Joyce Foundation. In a session moderated by a former Tribune reporter, White House official and Democratic strategist, David Axelrod, the former congressman spoke alongside Tim Heaphy, the chief counsel and lead investigator for the Jan. 6 House committee.

This was a left-leaning audience, receptive to sharp criticism of the Republican right and far friendlier to Kinzinger than many members of his own party. But something Kinzinger said at the Arts Club caught our attention after the conversation turned to recent school shootings.

Second Amendment people, Kinzinger said, should be on the front line of gun control.

In essence, Kinzinger was saying, the people who are interested in guns, and most likely to own them, actually know far more about what works and what does not in the matter of gun control than those who have no such knowledge. And as experts on guns, he said, they are thus morally obligated to use that expertise to solve what is clearly a crisis, given all the recent examples of emotionally troubled people acquiring powerful weaponry and using them to take innocent lives, often of children.

U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger attends a gun violence hearing on Oct. 3, 2019, at Kennedy King College in Chicago. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)

Many of them already know this, he implied, at least deep down, and are possibly just waiting to be asked in the right way.

Therefore, rather than seeing fervent supporters of the Second Amendment as the opposition to be defeated, he suggested, those who want to see sensible regulations on gun ownership, such as background checks, age restrictions and red flag laws, should see Second Amendment people as potential experts and allies. They know guns better than those who merely despise them.

Kinzinger was engaged in realpolitik here, noting that the constitutional protection for personal ownership of guns is unlikely to go away in our lifetimes. Better, then, to find common ground when it comes to the kinds of reform for which weve advocated here often.

Kinzinger is not the only person who has suggested that Americans try harder to find common ground in the interests of common-sense solutions. At a recent meeting in Austin, Texas, organized by the American Press Institute, a young nonprofit called The Flip Side spoke of its mission to help bridge the gap between liberals and conservatives, telling assembled opinion journalists from major newspapers that the use of less partisan language and tonality has proved to be a far more effective generator of meaningful common-sense change than rhetorical demonization.

We could not agree more. And gun control is not the only issue to which that applies, but its surely the biggest emergency.

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Editorial: Why 'Second Amendment people' should be at the forefront of gun control solutions - Chicago Tribune