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SALT LAKE CITY — The NAACP's Salt Lake branch focused on civic engagement and the importance of voter access and participation at its annual banquet Friday.
Kirk Jowers, head of the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics, called for increased voter participation in Utah, a challenge that is ongoing.
Jowers was the keynote speaker for the Salt Lake branch's 95th annual Life Membership and Freedom Fund event at the Little America Hotel. He recalled his early involvement with the NAACP, including in college, finding the organization a stalwart partner in his dedication to "making sure the barriers for voting are torn down."
"We went from a state that was one of the top three voting states always to one of the bottom voting states," Jowers said.
In Utah, he said, voters feel unengaged and believe their vote is not actually represented in the stances Utah's elected leaders take. In past years, voter participation overall and especially by women, young people, minorities, and non-native Utahns has dropped, he said.
Jowers praised Count My Vote, an initiative allowing candidates to get on the ballot by gathering a requisite number of signatures and letting unaffiliated voters participate in Republican primaries, which were previously open only to registered party members.
Count My Vote is going to change the way Utah politics works forever. It will bring everyone in.
–Kirk Jowers, head of the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics
A Utah Senate bill enabling the change passed the state Legislature in March. The first direct primary elections in Utah will be June 2016.
"Count My Vote is going to change the way Utah politics works forever," said Jowers, a founding member of the movement, receiving a round of applause from the crowd. "It will bring everyone in."
In explaining more about the Hinckley Center for Politics, Jowers recounted the experiences of Whitney Benns, a student who learned of her grandmother Bernice's efforts to improve conditions and opportunities for those living in Salt Lake's west side. What she learned inspired her to support voter access.
"Whereas her grandma Bernice's path focused on community issues, Whitney's passion was in politics and the law," Jowers said. "Whitney and I shared the belief that now, as in her grandma's time, there are barriers that stand in the way of participation and representation."
Jowers encouraged the crowd to support the young people in their lives to pursue internships that will teach them and provide them with experiences that will advance their goals.
NAACP Salt Lake President Jeanetta Williams welcomed the group and introduced the event's theme, "All in for Justice and Equality." Fighting discrimination is an ongoing challenge that takes tireless hours, she said.
Williams highlighted NAACP "game changers" being focussed on in Utah and across the country, including economic sustainability, education, health, public safety and criminal justice, voting rights and political representation.
Williams also highlighted local efforts, including support for same-sex marriage and encouraging local police agencies to supply body cameras to their officers.
James Green, a longtime member of the Salt Lake NAACP chapter, was given the Albert Fritz Civil Rights Worker of the Year Award, named after the local branch's president who served 1957-65 and is remembered for his leadership, lobbying efforts and marches.
Green was an active member of civil rights efforts in Utah and Salt Lake City, encountering segregation at swimming pools at Ogden's Lorin Farr Park and Lagoon and not being allowed to sit to order food in some area restaurants. He joined marches and picketing in Salt Lake City and contributed to the NAACP's voter registration efforts.
Chuck Payan, chairman of the NAACP Economic Development Committee, received the 2014 President's Award.
