This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Re "Lawmakers scrap effort to ban anti-gay discrimination" (Tribune, Feb. 4):
It is Friday, Feb. 3. The statewide anti-discrimination bill finally gets a hearing. There is an overflow crowd. Some people cannot get into the hearing room. Some are allowed to sit with the committee on the dais. However, one person should not have been sitting on the dais.
Gayle Ruzicka, president of the Utah Eagle Forum and longtime foe of civil rights for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community, should not have been allowed to sit on the dais because of the message that sent to those who support equal rights for ourselves or family.
My guess is that the committee members and Ruzicka didn't give it a thought, which is part of the problem with those who do discriminate. They don't think about the impact of their words and actions on people who are not part of their particular "group."
Ruzicka has said she has several gay "friends." I wonder what her definition of friend is. Mine includes wanting the same things for them that I have for myself — equal protection under the law.
Gail Turpin
Salt Lake City