On July 29, about a month after the University of Utah closed its Center for Equity and Student Belonging, LGBT Resource Center and Women’s Resource Center — going beyond what was required by the recently passed HB261 — a letter signed by nearly 900 staff and faculty members was sent to administration in opposition of the decision.
The letter has not received any kind of response, despite a follow-up request for acknowledgement. This silence is deeply disappointing but, sadly, not unprecedented.
Since last fall, several student demonstrations on campus were met with police force, and attempts to create a dialogue about socio-political issues impacting the campus community and the world at large were shut down or ignored altogether. Students were criminally charged for protesting the screening of a transphobic documentary at the Marriott library in November.
That same month, the Center for Equity and Student Belonging withdrew sponsorship from the student organization MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán) after they supported this documentary protest and voiced their concerns about the university’s ties with Israel.
Now, two thirds into a volatile election year, the university is doubling down on its disregard for the people it claims to proudly serve through its enforcement of policy changes related to HB261. One of the university’s three major goals as an institution is to serve its community — not just the campus community, but the state of Utah as a whole. The “About the U” website describes the U’s mission to embed itself in the social and cultural fabric of Utah. The university says it wants to cultivate community connections, build trust, uproot injustices and transform the future of the state. Yet time and time again, the administration’s actions have failed to support this sentiment.
Not only have vital resources been needlessly taken away from several underrepresented groups, but they have been taken away without any opportunity for those affected to voice their concerns. It could not be clearer at this point that the administration cares more about appeasing certain donors and legislators than it cares about keeping campus a safe and welcoming space for all.
For the moment, organizations such as QUAFFS (Queer Alliance For Faculty and Staff) and SACNAS (Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics & Native Americans in Science) are working to fill the space left by these center closures and provide support to those needing the resources that have been unjustly taken from them.
I urge the University of Utah to hear its faculty and staff and respond to our concerns.
(Kristina Lynae) Kristina Lynae is an alumna and current staff member at the University of Utah.
Kristina Lynae is an alumna and current staff member at the University of Utah. The views expressed in this op-ed are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Utah.
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