Ronald J. Norick

The bomb that exploded outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995, destroyed more than the federal building. More than three hundred buildings were damaged in the blast and twelve buildings had to be completely demolished. The bombing devastated Oklahoma City's downtown. Many businesses were reluctant to rebuild and the area remains a wasteland.

Ronald J. Norick, the mayor of Oklahoma City, urged Congress to pass legislation designating the bomb site as a national memorial and incorporating the memorial into the National Park Service. In the following address, he argues that making the bomb site a national memorial would send a message to the residents and businesses of Oklahoma City—and to Americans in general—that the healing process has begun. Businesses would be more eager to rebuild if they knew that the...