NORMAN — While debate continues over the use of the motto, “In God We Trust” on national and local stages, Tuesday Norman will consider adding yet another motto to the wall of the city council chambers.
Evoking the “Rule of Three” Council members Tom Kovach, James Griffith and Hal Ezzell requested the city manager put the resolution on the agenda to display the state motto, “Labor omnia vincit” in council chambers. Latin for “labor conquers all things,” the motto was first seen prior to statehood when it was put on the Grand Seal of the Territory of Oklahoma in 1893.
Council members said adding the state motto will broaden the historical and political perspective within council chambers.
“We’re coming up on statehood day and people had brought up complaints about ‘In God We Trust,’” Kovach said. “Several people asked that we put the state motto up also.”
Some hope including the state motto will even things out.
“There’s been an incredible outcry against putting ‘In God we Trust’ up,” Griffith said.
Criticism of the federal motto, “In God We Trust” has included complaints that some segments of Norman might feel excluded or alienated by displaying the phrase in council chambers. Some say displaying “In God We Trust” violates the separation of church and state.
“It was a way to tone it down a little bit” Griffith said. “Not only are we representing our federal motto, but our state motto is there as well.”
Griffith is a veteran who served in Vietnam. He said he voted for the “In God We Trust” display in part because he is a patriot and didn’t want to be criticized for voting against something that has been approved at the federal level.
“In God We Trust” was adopted as the official motto of the U.S. in 1956 and was recently reaffirmed on Nov. 1 by Congress. The Nov. 1 resolution also supports and encourages the display of the national motto in public buildings, schools, and government institutions.
Only a handful voted against the reaffirming resolution.
One of the few dissenting votes was cast by Congressman Robert Scott of Virginia who issued the following statement regarding the time spent on the resolution:
“Today we face the highest deficit in U.S. history; an unemployment rate of 9.1 percent and a growing number of people losing access to unemployment insurance each day; schools that lack the resources to give our students a proper education; 17.2 million households that are food insecure; and children who by the very circumstances of their birth are injected onto a Cradle to Prison Pipeline. Instead of facing these challenges and creating jobs to help American people make sure they have a roof over their head and food on their table, we are debating whether or not to affirm and proliferate a motto that was adopted in 1956 and is under no threat of attack. In addition to diverting attention away from substantive issues, the resolution is unconstitutional.
“When we were sworn in as Members of Congress, we took an oath to uphold the Constitution. This resolution is inconsistent with that oath and therefore I voted ‘no’ on the resolution.”
Scott argues that the phrase “In God We Trust” violates the First Amendment which states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion” by endorsing a particular religious view.
Many Norman residents expressed those same sentiments when the city council voted to display the phrase as part of a movement to put the phrase on council walls throughout the nation.
Oklahoma’s motto has interesting implications that could cause controversy in a different direction.
Translated as “labor conquers all things” or “hard work conquers all things,” the Sooner State motto has strong ties with the U.S. labor movement.
According to the Oklahoma Historical Society’s “Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture” labor unions were active in the Oklahoma prior to statehood. Labor unions associated with miners and locomotives were present. Trade unions were also active. Particularly strong were Oklahoma’s agricultural unions.
Oklahoma followed the national trend and the power and popularity of labor unions diminished starting in 1920 and hitting a low in 1930.
An online report by blog.aflcio.org on Oklahoma Laborfest held last August, makes the connection between Oklahoma’s motto and labor unions.
“... the tremendous impact of the union movement in Oklahoma. The state’s motto is ‘Labor Omnia Vincit’ — ‘Labor Conquers All’ — a phrase commonly used by former AFL President Samuel Gompers. Union members, in alliance with tenant farmers, won majority support for 24 demands at the state’s constitutional convention in 1906. Oklahoma’s legislature eventually passed laws prohibiting child labor and mandating compulsory school attendance, established state mining and factory inspectors, regulated the use of strike breakers during labor disputes and outlawed the blacklisting of union sympathizers by employers,” according to the AFL-CIO blog site.
“If we want to talk history, the phrase actually came from Virgil, in Roman times,” Kovach said. “It was an admonition for people to lay down their arms and go back to work in the fields. It speaks to me of a principal that I think is universal no matter your point of view left, right or center, that hard work conquers all. It speaks to working men and women of all types whether organized or unorganized and their importance to our state and nation.”
Joy Hampton 366-3539 jhampton@normantranscript.com
