Added: 01/26/2006 |
For Singles Oklahoma Looks To The FutureApproximately 3.5 million people live in the state of Oklahoma according to figures accumulated by the Census Bureau in 2005. The petroleum and food production industries are the major economic venues in Oklahoma. Women and men alike have enjoyed a resurgence of jobs in the state with the presence of these entities and the corporate interests that have been drawn to the state by the urbanization of the capital, Oklahoma City.
In addition, the city of Tulsa has become a center for not only energy but aerospace and telecommunications endeavors. MCI, Dish Network, Direct TV, USCellular, and Cingular all have corporate presences in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Women in the state have increasingly moved away from jobs thought of as "traditional" for females to the high tech opportunities offered by companies like these.
The state has 32 colleges and universities which not only provide an education to the youth of the state but also create settings for interaction among young singles. Oklahoma remains a largely rural state so that the presence of this high number of schools is a real boon for Oklahoma. Women and men in the state's younger generation have increasingly fled the difficulties of family farm life and for many the first step in that process is college.
In general, residents of Oklahoma celebrate their Native American heritage, understandable as the state was once known as "Indian Territory." Beginning in the 1830s Native American tribes that were considered to be "in the way" of American settlement were relocated to the future state of Oklahoma.
The Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole (the Five Civilized Tribes) were among the groups moved to Indian Territory as well as the Delaware, Seminoles, Quapaws, Senecas, Caddos, Wichitas, and the Osage Nation. "What's your tribe?" isn't just a pick-up line pitched out by singles. Oklahoma completely embraces its Native American heritage and tribal connections have deep importance.
With the effects of so-called "rural flight" effecting the population of all the states of the Midwest there may be resulting advantages for remaining singles. Oklahoma has made various offers, including tax breaks, available to entice newcomers and to encourage new families to settle down and to make Oklahoma their permanent home.
The importance of religion in the state makes area churches another major venue for singles. Oklahoma is eighty-five percent Christian with the Southern Baptist denomination predominating. With the heavy emphasis the Baptist church places on the integrity of the family, there are plentiful groups available for singles. Oklahoma is even home to the second-largest Christian cross in the nation displayed outside Edmonton, Oklahoma on I-35.
As a state in transition - fighting the effects of the flight of the educated young from the rural life and embracing a new economy fueled by petroleum and technology - Oklahoma embraces its Native American past with its eyes fixed firmly on the future.
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