When 1992 Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchú Tum gets a day off from advocating for peace and human rights worldwide, she likes to sleep in.

Menchú said the changes in climate and time zones wear on her during her travels. Once rested, she spends time with her husband of 17 years, Angel Canil; her 14-year-old son, Mash; and their three dogs. She also likes making jewelry, sewing, cooking and taking care of her plants.

"My house is a small jungle," she told The Salt Lake Tribune . "I like to be an ordinary person."

But some folks who attended Menchú's hourlong lecture Thursday at the University of Utah said she was inspirational and down-to-earth.

It was her first time in Utah, and more than 1,000 people showed up for the event, nearly filling Kingsbury Hall. Her keynote address -- it began and ended with a standing ovation, and had some laughs in between -- was one of several events this week at the U. in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday.

Menchú, 50, is a Mayan Indian from Guatemala who has spent her life fighting social injustice. She also ran unsuccessfully in 2007 for president of her Central American country. She has had her share controversy. For example, she has acknowledged that when she wrote a book about her life, she mixed her own testimony with experiences of other people during Guatemala's civil war that lasted from 1960 to 1996.

During her talk -- in Spanish and with an interpreter -- she told "young people" that there is no excuse for them not to be involved in challenging injustices. She encouraged them to initiate change in their communities because it doesn't happen on its own.

"Don't wait until you become a victim; you have your rights," she said.

Menchú said racism is a "disease" that affects people spiritually and emotionally when they are not content with themselves.

She said it still exists in her homeland --but she has hopes that it will improve over time.

"Why can someone be against a brother who doesn't have the same skin color?" she said. "Prejudice has brought us apart."

She said humans need to interact with humans who are different from them to experience various cultures. And if all people "respected" each other, they would be able to understand one another, despite their differences.

"The power of guns can never solve the problems of humanity," she said.

Menchú also said, "Human beings have abandoned our basic relationship with mother earth." She called on people to take responsibility for taking care of the environment.

After the event, Hanah Kim, a 22-year-old community college student, said Menchú "inspired me" to get more involved in human-rights issues.

Farah Melendez, a U. international studies sophomore, said Menchú's talk about fighting injustice reminded her of why she walked in Utah's historic immigrants rights march in 2006.

"It's an endless fight to making [things] better," she said.

jsanchez@sltrib.com