by G E Barr

Created on: February 15, 2009

THE GREAT AND RARE FERN HOLLAND

Once upon a time in the fields of Blue Jacket, Oklahoma, there ran a girl named Fern Holland, of blond hair and eyes as blue as a summer's day. Not quite of athletic build, Fern played sports. Most kids in Oklahoma feel obligated to. The person who Fern Holland was cannot be captured in one article. I doubt even a book could cover Fern.

Fern's early years were not easy, but hers was no where as bad as so many in Oklahoma. Fern just rolled with the punches. She was especially fond of her mother, whom, it is said battled mental illness. Quite successfully from this writer's point of view.

Fern Holland was an attorney, educated at the University of Oklahoma. A beautiful young woman with so much to live for. But getting married and having children wasn't something she wanted to do. Fern wanted to accomplish some things. She wanted to help people. She chose Iraq.

The following is an e-mail Fern sent to a good friend in Tulsa, before she died, ''They are widows. They wear all black, all you can see is their faces - no hair or neck. They don't wear gloves though and you can see their hands - very rough hands, dry and cracked and evidence of broken fingers from years ago, and huge knuckles from years of manual labor. Their faces wrinkled and dark, no makeup, but 2 small faded blue circles on their chins - tattoos. One of Saddam's thugs grew crops on their land and they thought they could remove him upon liberation. No such luck. He built a house on their land and refused to leave. They have court orders and everything and nobody will move the guy. Everyone's afraid of him. So much for the rule of law. I'm going to see him Saturday morning, along with the little ladies, the manager of the new women's center, the judge, and a couple Iraqi policemen. These little ladies reminded me of my mother. Salt of the Earth."

In her determination to get the thug removed from the property, Fern had gone before an Iraqi judge and pleaded the woman's cause. The judge agreed with Fern that the women had rights and that the thug should by law, remove himself.

It is said that Fern Holland had a "go-it-alone" mentality. After being raised in Oklahoma, by a mother who had the guts to get a divorce, she did. That you can bet on and it reflects the sad state of affairs in Oklahoma more than anything.

Days after the thug was removed from the women's property, Fern Holland was traveling in her Daewoo, when, it is said, that a white police truck pulled up beside the vehicle and opened fire with an AK-47.

The murder of Fern Holland was senseless. But a small group of Iraqi women got their land back from a sleazy squatter. And there is no doubt in my mind, that Fern's life was worth so much more. In fact, I'd venture to say that Fern's death was a horrible mockery of feminism, in the most morbid sense.

Fern Holland died for nothing, unless the women of Iraq begin to take things into their own hands and quit using priceless American blood to purchase what they want.

This is, only my opinion. The beautiful person that Fern Holland was, would disagree. Hers was, it seems, a suicide mission.

There is something about Fern Holland's story that does not jive. It does not float, and having read up on the subject, I am more horrified than mystified.

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