About Christie

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Thank you for visiting my campaign website today. I appreciate your interest in House District 72. This has been my home for nearly 40 years, and that of my family since the days of the Great Depression in the 1930s. As I’ve grown up in this district I’ve watched it change dramatically and I wish I could say it was for the better. I watched as one-by-one the shops at Northland closed and as Harvard Hills, McLain Shopping Center, Suburban Acres and many others in our community transformed from bustling retail centers into much needed social service centers. I watched as homes became vacant and boarded. I watched the schools I attended, Dunbar and Whittier, and even one my grandmother attended, Lowell, close the doors and later the buildings demolished. Throughout this time I watched hard-working people like my mother struggle to maintain what little they had as it decreased in value with the surrounding community. My mother lives in this district in the same home where she raised my sister and me. Like many of you, she moved here to raise her children in an affordable neighborhood with much to offer a young family. Now, as she nears retirement, she cannot afford to leave.

I believe this community is due a renaissance. This is not the first area to ever experience these problems. There are many older neighborhoods throughout the United States that have comeback from desolation. I believe the history of our community is rich and we have a culture and identity that needs to be honored rather than razed for new cookie-cutter structures that look like Any Town, USA. I believe our diversity is our strength and that we have much that makes us unique. Restoring our community by keeping our history and culture intact will restore our pride and provide distinction.

In revitalizing our community, we must work to restore the middle-class in our area. Nothing has developed the middle-class more so than the Labor Movement. Many in Oklahoma City, Democrats and Republicans, do not understand the long-term affect on our society from legislation against working men and women. With the passage of Right-to-Work in 2001 we received nothing but the Right-to-Work for LESS. Those who pushed this law promised companies would bring jobs to Oklahoma but we have seen more jobs leave than arrive. The jobs that left were high paying technical jobs and the jobs that have arrived have been low-wage service industry jobs. According to Tulsa County Assessor records, the annual median income level has since dropped by $2,000. That’s the long-term affect of Right-to-Work.  That’s the long-term affect on our community.

I hope you will take a minute to look over the website. It will always be a work in progress as I write more information about the issues and where I stand on them so please check back for more information on events and activities, or contact me through email with your questions and comments. I believe our community suffers from a lack of knowledge and as a Communication’s graduate from the University of Tulsa I know communication is a very important educational tool. I applaud you for taking the time to education yourself and ask that you communicate that knowledge to others in our community.

Warmest regards,

Christie Breedlove