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SALT LAKE CITY — As the proposed legislative overhaul of diversity, equity and inclusion programming at Utah's universities speeds through the Utah Legislature, some college students are raising their voices against the change.
Such programming, they say, is key in creating space and a sense of belonging for students who might otherwise feel marginalized. "Keeping diversity and equity and inclusion is really integral to retaining diverse students on campus and making sure that everybody's voice is heard, making sure that people are not only safe but that they're able to grow and change," said Nayra Green, a University of Utah junior.
Green and a handful of other students belonging to a group called Utah Students United spoke against HB261 at a demonstration Monday on the University of Utah campus, later holding a silent protest at the state Capitol. They warned that the proposed legislative change would adversely impact a pocket of students who may already feel uncertainty in Utah, offering a student perspective on the issue for the first time, at least in such a high-profile way.
Later Monday afternoon, though, HB261 — overwhelmingly approved by the Republican-dominated Utah House on Friday — took another step forward. The Senate Education Committee held a hearing on the measure, voting 8-1 after receiving testimony from the public to recommend that the full Senate approve the measure. The next step, with the 2024 session just six days old, will be a hearing before the full Senate.
Despite the fierce opposition from some, Rep. Katy Hall, the bill's sponsor, said she and other lawmakers involved in crafting the measure gathered a wide range of feedback. Moreover, she said it won't adversely impact "student groups" — countering some critics' worries that student cultural centers could face elimination — and won't affect students with disabilities.
"We will still be helping and, perhaps, open more doors to high-risk students as well," said Hall, R-South Ogden.
Even so, criticism from some in the public toward HB261 has been intense. At Monday's demonstration, Green said she worries the measure could discourage students of color from remaining in Utah's universities. She also warned that it could send a stifling message to some.
"I think that retention isn't the only issue. It's kind of an issue of humanity, just making sure that people are able to be themselves and authentic on campus," she said.
Proponents of HB261 say the measure is meant, in part, to expand programming now offered through diversity, equity and inclusion programs to all students. As is, such initiatives are typically geared toward students of color and others from groups that have traditionally faced marginalization, but HB261 would allow all students in need regardless of race, ethnicity or other personal identifiers to tap into such programming.
The critics of the bill at Monday's demonstration, though, argued that students of color, women, members of the LGBTQ community and others can face the sort of marginalization that others don't, necessitating diversity, equity and inclusion programming.
Elisha Fernandez, a recent graduate of Brigham Young University, spoke at the demonstration expressing concern that without diversity, equity and inclusion programs, many students will feel voiceless or out of place.
"Coming to BYU, I was not prepared for the loneliness of being Latina, a first-generation student, disabled and queer in a very homogenous student population. Suddenly, I had to navigate spaces filled with prejudice, exclusion and, often, discrimination," she said.
In the course of her time at BYU, though, she connected with a club of Latino students, took a class on Latino civil rights issues and learned of other resources that helped her develop a sense of connection. It underscored to her the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
"Suddenly I felt seen and empowered," Fernandez said. She went on: "Without (diversity, equity and inclusion) initiatives and spaces, particularly in less diverse spaces here in Utah and at BYU, I would not have had a voice or a safe space on campus."
Malaki Wilcox, a University of Utah junior, called measures targeting equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives here and in state legislatures across the country "antisocial-justice backlash."
HB261 "is as far-reaching as they come," he went on. "And the scariest part of it is, it's kind of unprecedented. We haven't seen a bill like this, really, ever."
The measure would reimagine diversity, equity and inclusion programs not only at universities, but within other state and local governmental entities. It would also prohibit universities and other governmental units from asking job applicants for statements on their thoughts on diversity issues, as now sometimes occurs. Furthermore, the measure aims to foster "academic freedom" on university campuses, allowing conservative and other voices a space in a university setting, which some critics say doesn't occur enough.
"For the majority and those in power, equity and equality feel like oppression and this is a reaction to that," Wilcox charged. "This far-reaching bill is extremely ideological."
Through the afternoon Monday, proponents and opponents sounded off in equal number on HB261 at the Capitol as lawmakers prepared to discuss it in the Senate Education Committee. Some of the same people who addressed a House Education Committee hearing on the bill on Jan. 17 also addressed the Senate committee, many raising the same points for and against the measure. While much of the diversity, equity and inclusion programming has been geared to students of color, the race and ethnicity of those testifying Monday, both for and against HB261, seemed to cut across the racial and ethnic spectrum.
Hall, before public comment began, emphasized that HB261 wouldn't mean an end to programming that has been offered through diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. The measure would just expand it to all students who might need it. "It doesn't close cultural centers. It doesn't defund programs," she said.
James Evans, former chairman of the Utah Republican Party, sat with Hall, speaking on behalf of HB261 and emphasizing that programming offered through diversity centers would still be available. "You come to the table as you are. If you need extra assistance, you got it," Evans said.
Many of the supporters speaking Monday and at last week's committee hearing seemed to rebuff the notion that students of color should have exclusive access to the extra assistance that diversity, equity and inclusion programs have been designed to provide. On the flip side, many of the HB261 foes argued that such programming is needed for marginalized groups to help counter historic racism and discrimination some have faced.
