THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON March 7, 1997 It has been almost two years since the bombing of the Alfred P. We learned a lot about ourselves that day. We recognized that we are a family, that a cowardly terrorist attack on one American is an attack on us all. We were reminded that, despite our differences in cutlook and background and politics, Americans still unite to help cne another when tragedy strikes. And in the wake of that tragedy, we realized anew that the human spirit, blessed by hope and strengthened by determination, can rise above any adversity. Now we have an opportunity to unite again around the citizens of Oklahoma City. I ask all Americans to join me in supporting the effort to establish a memorial on the site of the bombing. Together, let us transform that scarred square of earth into a fitting tribute to those who died, to those who survived, and to those whose lives have been changed forever by this devastating event. By honoring them, we can help to bring healing and create hope for a brighter, more secure future. INTERGOVERNMENTAL LETTER OF UNDERSTANDING PREMISE This Letter of Understanding is intended to provide a framework that will enable the Murrah Federal Building Memorial Task Force (the "Task Force"), Oklahoma City Memorial Foundation (the "Foundation"), and representatives of the City of Oklahoma City (the "City"), the State of Oklahoma (the "State") and the government of the United States (the "U.S. Government") to work together efficiently and respectfully in developing a National Memorial (the “Memorial") relating to the April 19, 1995, bombing in Oklahoma City, which will be appropriate, enduring and sensitive to those most directly affected by the bombing. This document outlines the expectations and responsibilities each participant has related to development and ongoing maintenance of the Memorial. It reinforces the mutual commitment participants have to ensure that Memorial efforts are timely, non-political, productive and respectful of the needs of victims' families and survivors. BACKGROUND Few events in the past quarter-century have rocked Americans' perception of themselves and their institutions, and brought together the people of our nation more intensely than the April 19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City. - The resulting 168 murders immediately touched thousands of family members wives, husbands, children, brothers, sisters, parents -- whose lives will forever bear the scars of having had those precious to them taken away so brutally. Suffering with such families are hundreds of survivors who struggle not only with the suffering around them, but with their own physical and emotional injuries and with shaping a life beyond April 19. Such losses and struggles are personal and, since they resulted from so public an attack, they also are shared with a community, a nation and the world. Just as reverberations from the blast shook people as far away as 50 miles, the effects of the crime reach across Oklahoma and throughout the nation. By its very nature as an attack on the American government and our public servants, the bombing was a violent assault on each American citizen. When friends, colleagues, neighbors and fellow citizens are brutalized, each of us is diminished. Mindful of the far-reaching impact of the assault in the heart of Oklahoma City and the nation, and aware of the historic nature of the event, Oklahoma City Mayor Ron Norick appointed the 350-member volunteer Task Force charged with developing an appropriate Memorial. The Task Force, in turn, organized the Foundation to acquire funding for development of the Memorial. Parties to this Letter of Understanding recognize that prior to Sept. 1, 1996, all Memorial planning activities occurred by operation of the Task Force, but, effective Sept. 1, 1996, the Task Force will be transformed into the Foundation, and all future Memorial planning activities will be conducted by the Foundation. MUTUAL COMMITMENTS Throughout the planning, design and construction of the Memorial, we; the undersigned participants, agree on behalf of ourselves and our organizations to: 1. Remain faithful to the ideal that the development of the Memorial shall be respectful, nonpolitical and timely. 2. Recognize, respect and support the autonomy of the Task Force and the Foundation as nonprofit, non-political organizations dedicated to creating and overseeing a Memorial development process that is sensitive, inclusive, collaborative, thorough and productive. 3. Recognize and respect the special role the local community has as the site of the 1995 bombing and as the home of the Memorial. While the crime has national and international implications, victims' families, survivors and residents of Central Oklahoma bore the brunt of the impact and rightly shall play a leadership role in planning and establishing a lasting Memorial. 4. Recognize that among the range of opinions, ideas and priorities expressed in the information gathering phase of the Memorial development process, those expressed by victims' families and survivors shall be given the greatest weight and highest degree of respect. 5. Recognize and abide by the Task Force Mission Statement adopted by the Advisory Committee of the Task Force on March 26, 1996. 6. Recognize as being final the design selection made pursuant to the design selection methodology adopted by the Task Force and an International Design Competition administered by the Task Force. 7. Recognize, respect and facilitate a Memorial development time line to be outlined by the Task Force. |