As the nation prepares to mark the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum is turning its own experience into a bridge for other sites of tragedy. An exhibit running through September illustrates how the lessons learned after the 1995 Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building bombing have guided memorials in New York, Oslo, Paris, Spain and beyond.

From Oklahoma City to New York and beyond

After the 1995 bombing, New York first responders traveled to Oklahoma City to help the community heal. When the September 11 attacks claimed six Oklahomans and nine first responders who had previously assisted after the Murrah blast, the two cities forged a lasting bond. Director Kari Watkins says the museum will re‑print a 2001 New York Times advertisement in this year’s editions of the New York Times, Washington Post and Pittsburgh Post‑Gazette as a reminder that “we’re all in this together.”

Guiding Oslo’s 22 July Centre

The partnership extended to Norway after the July 22, 2011 terror attack. Lena Fahre, director of Oslo’s 22 July Centre, praised Oklahoma City’s input, noting that the museum’s staff and the 9/11 Memorial Museum helped shape Norway’s new memorial museum. “It’s very hard to commemorate and mediate the brutality, but we have to go in to try and understand it because we want to prevent other attacks,” Fahre said.

Upcoming documentary and joint visits

Later this month, directors from the five participating museums – Oklahoma City, New York, Paris, Spain and Oslo – will travel to New York to meet survivors, families and first responders, and to attend the September 11 memorial service. The Oklahoma City museum will also release a documentary highlighting the international partnership and its educational mission.

Why the collaboration matters

Watkins emphasizes that sharing best practices helps each site educate visitors about the impact of terrorism while fostering hope for prevention. “In this world of incredible noise and friction, we have to come together to make things better,” she said.

The exhibit and documentary aim to pass the hard‑won lessons of Oklahoma City’s own tragedy to a new generation, reinforcing the belief that remembrance and education are powerful tools against future violence.

Original reporting: Oklahoma City News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.