The Human Response in State Legislature

Recently I came across www.utahvalues.org which is a Utah group that asserts love, fairness, opportunity and family. This group asserts that it is not within our Utah value system to allow hate and discrimination against those in the LGBT spectrum. On the site there was a place to fill in your address and be given a form to write to your local representatives to ask them to vote for anti-discrimination bills.

Here's what I wrote:

As a young voting constituent I'm writing you today to ask you to next year vote in favor of non-discrimination bills in Utah regarding the LGBTQ community. I've grown up in utah being taught to hold to my integrity and to always love and cherish those around me. As a state I believe we are very kind and generous people, it is something I love about living in Utah, and I believe that there is currently an incongruency between the law and the hearts of most of our citizens.
 
As a state we are people of service, people of charity and people of kindness and yet, the law stands to uphold the bigoted attitudes of the few. I'm not writing to take a stand on "the big issue" right now (maybe that will come later) but right now I ask that we offer the protection of the law to those who are currently cast in the shadows.

The majority of the people of this state have the moral guidance to know that firing someone because of a label is wrong, that discriminating housing opportunities based on a life style choice is inhumane; so why not spread this simple reform to the whole state?
 

It has been said that laws have a certain teaching property, that laws give a baseline for morality in a sense. Maybe those who were not taught to withhold hate will see such a law, sensor themselves and hateful behavior could be stopped in its tracks.
 

At this point it's not about the lifestyle, its about the integrity we exhibit when we protect those who we might not even agree with.
 
Thank you for your service in our political process, and I am confident that you will act within what your conscience deems as good and right.
 
Your constituent,
Carly Crosby

So I wrote this, sent it off into cyber-space and didn't really expect much other than a "thank you for your insights" email that I've gotten back from my national senators in the past.

Boy was I wrong.

I actually got a real response! Not just a form letter, or some intern stating where the delegate offically stands and has voted. No! I got two honest to God emails (there was a mishap with the send button). Now I'm not going to list the whole content of the emails or the representative's name out of respect in case this wasn't in his P.R. playbook, but I will give you a gist of how he responded and show you what I wrote back.

First of all he thanked me for writing, and stated that he agreed on the concept of non-discrimination based on LGBTQ factors. He then posed an interesting question: how? It was something I hadn't done my research on. Apparently to protect anyone within a certain group it has to be proven that the employer was informed on the issue. That is why when you apply for almost anything in the US they have to ask your race, gender, ethnicity and if you have disabilities.

He asked if we should require that people identify their sexual orientation and identity on forms. He states that many people would feel uncomfortable with that, and I tend to agree. This is about the end of the first email to which I responded:

First off, thank you so much for your response. In all honesty I was shocked as this is the first time I've ever gotten a "real" response from a representative. I really appreciate it.

I'd never realized that the identification statements were there to protect from race and gender discrimination, I thought it was purely survey. I can definitely see where this would apply to the LGBT issue and make things complex. It's nice to see that there really is a reason why such a bill would have a hard time being passed.

If you don't mind my asking, do you know if this type of "identification for protection" system is currently in place in the states that do protect against discrimination? I'm wondering if this is the only way to go about protections and if it is, how their populace responded to it, if know of any states with that in place I could do my own research. If you aren't aware then that is fine too, I don't need to take up your time if it's not off the top of your head.

Thank you again for responding so quickly and so, how can I say, humanly? It really bolsters my confidence in not only you but our state system. Often times, college age kids like me have told me that they find no point in writing or contacting representatives because they feel they are voiceless, that our legislature is not interested in hearing what we have to say. You have proven them wrong.
 

Thank you,
Carly Crosby

I then looked at my junk mail and found that he had sent a second email right after the first because his iPhone accidentally sent half the message first.

He goes on to ask me who else we should protect by law from discrimination. Listing different groups of people (obese, big noses, smokers ect) he shows his point that it is a very complex issue that can branch off very easy.

He then humbly states that he doesn't have the answers and hopes I can see that these are complex issues that don't have simple answers.

This was my response:

Oops your second response was sent to my junk mail so I just found it. About where to draw the line, yes it is quite complex on who are victims and who are not. I think anti-discrimination is almost always going to be a good thing. I think because this issue specifically is so polarized that it demands attention and also because there has been such blatant discrimination. I don't think I have all the answers either, all I know is that I know people who have lost housing opportunities and jobs because of their sexual orientation and identity.

If we lived in a perfect society where people were judged on merit alone then maybe none of this would be necessary but we don't. We live in a broken world, sometimes a broken system and we must protect the individual against the bombardment of the bigoted.

I don't think it is wise to deal in slippery slope logic when it comes to protecting people. I think that we need to deal with the issues that are impacting our citizens on large scales. If in the future people come forward requesting protection from discrimination based on weight or body modification or skin clearness then we deal with those issues then. I don't think we should stand paralyzed in fear of snowballing events, otherwise nothing will be done and suffering will continue.

Allowing fear to rule our policy will never result in the America we think of when we feel patriotic. There are issues more important than that. Not just the one we are discussing but many issues. There is a storm of people who wish to stop us in our tracks so that they can slip around us. If we cannot boldly trust our conscience and move into uncharted waters then we do not deserved to be called the home of the brave.

Too many people these days bury their heads in the sand hoping things will just work themselves out. That is not what this country is about. I refuse to believe that I am voiceless and that those who are discriminated against are voiceless. "The future depends on what you do today."- Ghandi

Sorry if it sounded rantish, I am just very passionate about the political sector. I really appreciate your willingness to look at this issue and listen to my thoughts on it, as I said in my last email it gives me confidence in you as a leader for cache valley and gives me confidence in the representative system in general.

Thank you,
Carly Crosby

Over-all I was very impressed by this man. It may not have shown in my summary but he showed great humility and willingness to listen to all sides of the story. He seemed so real to me. He wasn't a pompous old man with no time to listen, his concern was evident, his grasp on the issues exemplary.

This little exchange has given me hope for this state. I haven't even received a response yet (because I just sent mine) but I am confident that this man wishes to truly represent his people. He has gained my respect and, most likely, my vote.

I think another thing that this shows is that if you, as a young barely donating (or non-donating) college student, want to exact change, maybe we should start from the ground up. Our local officials are so much closer to us and to our issues than the big boys in D.C., they listen more, they are willing to teach.

It's called grass roots for a reason, sometimes we have to start small to exact big change, maybe try writing your local leaders first before trying for the distant political cartoon of a spokes person in congress.

Carly