68.12.169.113 at 04:48, 8 January 2007

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'''Okie''' is an appellation, dating from as early as [[1905]], denoting a resident or native of [[Oklahoma]]. It is derived from the name of the state, similar to ''Texan'' or ''Tex'' for someone from [[Texas]], or ''Arkie'' or ''Arkansawyer'' for a native of [[Arkansas]]. But in [[California]] and much of the Western US, the term came to symbolize an emigrant who left the South-central, Midwest and sometimes, Southeast US in the [[1930's]] before [[World War II]] came to settle in masses and restarted their lives in the region's agriculture and manufacturing industries.

==Pejorative connotation==
Historically, if someone used the term ''Okie'' (rather than "Oklahoman"), the intention was as an insult or a [[pejorative]] and sometimes an ethnic or political slur (for a rural [[conservative]] [[white Americans|white]] lives in farming regions of California), despite in the 1990's [[political correctness]] trend could (but didn't) do away with the term ''Okie'' in a "[[liberal]]" [[tolerance]]-minded place like California.

Usually, residents of [[California]] and some [[politics|politically]] motivated writers used the term to describe white and [[Mulato|mixed-race]] (or [[Cherokee]] and [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indians]]), [[poor]] or low-income [[Migrant worker|migrant farm worker]]s and their families forced to flee their farms during the [[Great Depression]] of the [[1930s]]. Californians also used the term to describe any poor person migrating to their state, not just those from Oklahoma or from the South-central states.

Over the decades, the pejorative nature of the term has begun to change; many from Oklahoma now consider the use of the term to be either neutral (a shortened term for "Oklahoma") or even a matter of pride. Whether the term is pejorative or not today depends upon the intent of the speaker and the circumstances of the term's use, but a far cry from self-depricating racial or ethnic terms like the "[[nigger|N word]]", [[Asian American|chink]] and [[Mexican American|beaner]]" will be treated as inflammatory in California.

==Great Depression usage==
[[Image:Lange-MigrantMother02.jpg|thumb|"Migrant Mother" by [[Dorothea Lange]] featuring [[Florence Owens Thompson]]]]
===Dust Bowl era migrations===
In the [[1930s]], during the [[Dust Bowl]] era, large numbers of [[farmer]]s, fleeing [[ecological disaster]], migrated from the [[Great Plains]] and Southwest regions to [[California]] mostly along historic [[Route 66]]. More of the migrants were from Oklahoma than any other [[United States state|state]], and a total of approximately 15% of the Oklahoma population left for California.

Ben Reddick, a free-lance [[journalist]] and later publisher of the ''Paso Robles Daily Press'', is credited with first using the term ''Okie'', in the mid-1930s, to identify migrant farm workers. He noticed the "OK" abbreviation (for Oklahoma) on many of the migrant’s [[license plate]]s and referred to them in his article as "OKies". Californians began calling all migrants "Okies," regardless of whether or not they were actually from Oklahoma. The term was made famous nationwide by [[John Steinbeck]]'s [[novel]] ''[[The Grapes of Wrath]]''.

===California's "Anti-Okie Law"===
In [[1937]], California passed the so-called "Anti-Okie Law" (Section 2615 St. 1937, p. 1406) which stated, "Every person, firm or corporation, or officer or agent thereof that brings or assists in bringing into the State any [[Pauperism|indigent person]] who is not a resident of the State, knowing him to be an indigent person, is guilty of a misdemeanor," The statute was eventually overturned in [[1941]] by [[Edwards v. California|Edwards v. California (314 U.S. 160)]]. Edwards had brought his brother-in-law from Texas to California and was convicted and sent to prison for six months.

===Changing usage of the term===
[[Will Rogers]], himself a rich Okie immigrant to California, once [[Will Rogers phenomenon|remarked jokingly]] that the Okies arriving in California increased the [[Intelligence quotient|intelligence]] of both states.

In [[1968]], [[Governor of Oklahoma|Oklahoma Governor]] [[Dewey F. Bartlett]] made Reddick, the originator of the California usage, an honorary Okie. In the early 1970's, [[Merle Haggard]]'s country song ''I'm an [[Okie from Muskogee]]'' was a billboard hit on national airwaves.

By the 1970's, the term ''Okie'' became familiar to most Californians as a prototype of a subcultural group, just like the resurgence of [[Southeast United States|Southern American]] regionalism and renewal of ethnic American (i.e. [[Irish American]], [[Italian American]] or [[Polish American]] ) identities in the Northeast and Midwest states at the time.

Since the 1990's, the children and grandchildren of ''Okie''s in California changed the very meaning of ''Okie'' to a self-title of pride in obtaining success, as well to challenge what they felt was [[liberal elite]] "snobbery" or "the last group to make fun of" in the state's urban area cultures.

==Modern usage==
In the later half of the [[twentieth century]], there became increasing evidence that the pejorative meaning of the term "Okie" was changing; former and present "Okies" began to apply the label as a badge of honor and symbol of the Okie survivor attitude.

In one example, [[Republican party (United States)|Republican]] Governor Dewey F. Bartlett launched a campaign in the 1960s to popularize ''Okie'' as a neutral term for Oklahomans; however, the [[Democratic party (United States)|Democrats]] used the campaign, and the fact that Bartlett was born in [[Ohio]], as a political tool against him, and further degraded the term for a time.

It has been said that some Oklahomans who stayed and lived through the Dust Bowl see the Okie migrants as being quitters who fled Oklahoma; but there is hardly a native Oklahoman who does not have some family member who made the trip. Most Oklahoma natives are as extraordinarily proud of their Okies who made good in California as are the Okies themselves—proud even of the Arkies, West Texans, and others who got painted with the same brush.

Oklahomans usually use ''Okie'' without prejudice but it is often used jocularly too, similar to ''Hoosier'' by Hoosiers or ''redneck'' by rednecks, who also do not consider terms for themselves particularly denigrating.

In California, "Okie" is no longer common [[slang]], yet still retains a meaning similar to "[[redneck]]."

==Usage in American popular culture==
===Novels===
Steinbeck's novel, ''The Grapes of Wrath'', has often been criticized as a false portrayal of Okies intended to advance a [[Left wing politics|leftist]] political agenda.<ref>Windschuttle, "Steinbeck's Myth of the Okies": "Unfortunately for the reputation of the author [John Steinbeck], however, there is now an accumulation of sufficient historical, demographic, and climatic data about the 1930s to show that almost everything about the elaborate picture created in the novel [The Grapes of Wrath] is either outright false or exaggerated beyond belief."</ref>

Detractors point to his portrayal of Okies leaving because of bankers [[forclosure|foreclosing]] on their farms of many generations. Many, if not most, of the migrants were tenant farmers and were constantly moving from farm to farm for their entire lives. Those who owned their own farms and left looking for work only sold them if they decided to stay where the jobs were. The novel was also banned by many libraries for its prurient portrayal of [[Rose of Sharon]] suckling a starving man. The more cynical observers opined that the scene was included just for the purpose of making his book controversial.

In the ''Cities In Flight'' series of science fiction novels by [[James Blish]], the term "Okie" was applied in a similar context to entire cities that, thanks to an anti-gravity device, took flight to the stars in order to escape the Earth's economic collapse. Working as a migrant labor force, these cities came to act as cultural pollinators, spreading technology and knowledge throughout the expanding human civilization. The later novels focus on the travels of New York, N.Y. as one such Okie city, though there are hundreds more.

Also in ''On the Road'', the road-novel written by [[Jack Kerouac]] between [[1948]] and [[1949]] (although it was not published until [[1957]]), the term appears to refer to some of the people the main character finds while working on the cotton plantations of [[American South|the south]] during his trips around the States.

===Motion pictures===
In the movie '''[[Chinatown (1974 movie)|Chinatown]]''', when [[Jack Nicholson]]'s character, [[Jake 'J.J' Gittes]] is caught snooping in an orchard, he refers to one of the farmers as an "Okie" before being knocked unconscious by one of the farmers.

In [[Breakfast at Tiffany's]], the agent character O.J. Berman says that when he first met Holly Golightly, he couldn't tell if she was a "Hillbilly or and Okie" due to her accent.

===Television===
In the HBO series movie '''[[Carnivàle]]''', "Okies" form the majority of the followers of [[Brother Justin Crowe]].

===Okies in music===
*''California Okie'' - [[Buck Owens]] (1976).
*''Dear Okie'' - Doye O’Dell/Rudy Sooter (1948)—''"Dear Okie, if you see Arkie, tell ’im Tex’s got a job for him out in Californy."''
*''Lonesome Okie Goin’ Home'' - [[Merl Lindsay]] and the Oklahoma Nite Riders (1947).
*''Oakie Boogie'' - Jack Guthrie and His Oklahomans (1947)—considered by many to be the first Rock & Roll song.
*''[[Okie (J.J. Cale album)|Okie]]'' - [[J.J. Cale]] (1974).
*''[[Okie From Muskogee]]'' - [[Merle Haggard]] (1969)—58th on the Top 500 [[Country Music]] Songs list.
*''Okie Skies'' - The Bays Brothers (2004).
*''Okies in California'' - Doye O'Odell (1949).
*''Ramblin' Okie'' - Terry Fell.
*''She's An Okie'' - Al Vaughn.
*''The Streets of Bakersfield'' - [[Dwight Yoakam]] (1988)

===Okie poetry===
*Cahill, Charlie. ''Point Blank Poetry: Okie Country Cowboy Poems''. Midwest City, OK: CF Cahill, 1991. LoC Control Number: 92179243
*Harrison, Pamela. ''Okie Chronicles''. Cincinnati: David Robert Books, 2005. ISBN 1-932339-87-6
*McDaniel, Wilma Elizabeth. California Okie Poet Laureate. All works.
*Rose, Dorothy. ''Dustbowl Okie Exodus''. Seven Buffaloes Press, 1987. ISBN 9998546451

===Other Okie fiction===
*Charles, Henry P. ''That dumbest Okie, and other short stories: Oklahoma! "The land of honest men and slender women."'' Wetzel, c1952.
*Cuelho, Artie, Jr. ''At the Rainbow's End: A Dustbowl Collection of Prose and Poetry of the Okie Migration to the San Joaquin Valley''. Big Timber, Montana: Seven Buffaloes Press, 1982. ISBN 0-916380-25-4
*Haslam, Gerald. ''Okies: Selected Stories''. Santa Barbara, California: Peregrine Smith, Inc, 1975. ISBN 0-87905-042-X
*Hudson, Lois Phillips. ''Reapers of the Dust.'' Minnesota Historical Society Press, 1984. ISBN 0873511778

==Trivia==
[[Image:Call_OKIE_logo.png|thumb|right|100px|''Call OKIE'' logo]]
[[Image:Okie_P47_logo.png|thumb|right|100px|Okie P47D artwork]]

*'''Call OKIE''' is a non-profit organization created to oversee underground utilities and excavations in the state of Oklahoma. It was created in response to the ''Oklahoma Underground Facilities Damage Prevention Act'' enacted in 1981. [http://www.callokie.com/]

*'''Okie ''' was the name of two P-47 fighter/bombers piloted by Maj. Quince L. Brown of the 84th Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group, during World War II. Brown was one of the 8th Army Air Force's first aces and credited with 14.333 victories. His first P-47D was noted for its distinctive artwork. He was killed during his second combat tour. Brown's hometown was Bristow, Oklahoma, and he was inducted into the Oklahoma Aviation and Space Hall of Fame in 1994. [http://www.78thfightergroup.com/history/qlbrown.html], [http://www.78thfightergroup.com/history/qlbrown2.html]

*'''OKIE (Oklahoma Israel Exchange)''' is an independent non-profit organization established to coordinate economic and cultural activities between the state of Oklahoma and the state of Israel. It was created 1992 by then Oklahoma Governor David Walters. [http://www.oklahomaisraelexchange.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1]

*'''Okie Derby''' is the world's largest proficiency air rally. It is sponsored annually by the Oklahoma Chapter of the [[Ninety-Nines]] (International Organization of Women Pilots). [http://www.scs99s.org/races.htm]

*An '''OKIE pin''', a promotional souvenir developed by Governor Dewey Bartlett, (and an Oklahoma flag) was placed in the Apollo 10 lunar module Snoopy by Commander [[Thomas P. Stafford]] before it was sent into orbit around the sun.

*A famous [[paradox]] says that "When the Okies left Oklahoma to California, they increased the average intelligence of both the states." Today, this paradox has been modernized to include any state that Okie may move to (typically applied to Texas and Arkansas).

*The [[Government of Oklahoma|state government of Oklahoma]] has posted on their webpage a 20 question quiz to test your "Okie knowledge" here [http://www.ibelieveinoklahoma.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=48&Itemid=647].

==See also==
* [[Oklahoma]]
* [[Dust Bowl]]
* ''[[Grapes of Wrath]]''
* [[Migrant worker]]
* [[Pejorative]]
* [[Prejudice]]
* [[Redneck]]
* [[Will Rogers]]

<br clear="all">

==Additional reading==
*Gregory, James N. ''American Exodus: The Dust Bowl Migration and Okie Culture in California''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0-19-504423-1
*La Chapelle, Peter. [http://www.ucpress.edu/books/pages/10311.html ''Proud to Be an Okie: Cultural Politics, Country Music, and Migration to Southern California'']. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2007. ISBN 0-520-24889-2
*Lange, Dorothea; Paul S. Taylor. ''An American Exodus: A Record of Human Erosion''. 1939.
*Morgan, Dan. ''Rising in the West: The True Story of an "Okie" Family from the Great Depression through the Regan Years''. New York: Knopf, 1992. ISBN 0-394-57453-2
*Ortiz, Roxanne Dunbar. ''Red Dirt: Growing up Okie''. New York: Verso, 1997. ISBN 1-85984-856-7
*Sonneman, Toby F. ''Fruit Fields in My Blood: Okie Migrants in the West''. Moscow, Idaho: University of Idaho Press, 1992. ISBN 0-89301-152-5

==External links==
* [http://www.ok-history.mus.ok.us/enc/okie.htm Okie—Oklahoma Historical Society]
* [http://okielegacy.org/journal/ezine/index.asp The Okie Legacy—ezine]
* [http://www.monthlyreview.org/0702dunbar.htm ''One or Two Things I Know about Us: Rethinking the Image and Role of the "Okies"''—Monthly Review, Vol 54, No. 3., July-August 2002]
* [http://www.ibelieveinoklahoma.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=48&Itemid=647 An "Okie Knowledge" Quiz from the official web page of Oklahoma state government]
* [http://www.travelok.com/mediaProf/pressReleases.asp?id=929 Embrace your "inner Okie"]

==Footnotes==
<references />

==Bibliography==
*Windschuttle, Keith. [http://www.newcriterion.com/archive/20/jun02/steinbeck.htm "Steinbeck's Myth of the Okies".] ''The New Criterion'', Vol. 20, No. 10, June 2002.

[[Category:Demographic history of the United States|Okie]]
[[Category:Oklahoma|Okie]]
[[Category:Pejorative terms for people|Okie]]
[[Category:Regional nicknames]]

[[de:Okie]]

Okie - Revision history

68.12.169.113 at 04:48, 8 January 2007