Debra Daniels remembers the pain she felt hearing racial slurs while going to elementary school in Ogden as one of the few black students in the 1960s.
“One of the biggest lies I was told as a child is “Sticks and stones will break your bones but words will never hurt you,'” said Daniels, director of the U Women’s Resource Center. “The power of language is immense.”
Daniels was one of about 75 people who attended a discussion Thursday on how to deal with issues involving discrimination in Salt Lake City. City officials and community members considered ways to eliminate racism in schools, government and neighborhoods. The discussion, titled “Dialogue on Discrimination,” was organized by the Salt Lake City Human Rights Commission, the Office of Diversity and Human Rights and the City Council.
Yolanda Nez, a coordinator of the event from the Office of Diversity and Human Rights, said the discussion is critical to Salt Lake City’s progression as a community.
City officials at the meeting took notes on what community members said about their own experiences regarding racism. The notes are being compiled into an official report. Along with a team from the Human Rights Council, Mayor Ralph Becker will consider implementing new policies to improve race relations in Salt Lake City, Nez said.
“This (discussion) is a critical thing for our community,” said council member Eric Jergensen. “We want to improve how the city views each other. Not just in the way government performs, but in how we treat our neighbors.”
Daniels said she feels that discrimination still exists in Utah but is confident that things can be improved by simply learning how to communicate with one another.
“We have not learned how to have a comfortable conversation about race in our communities,” Daniels said. “That is critical.”
Community members of many different ethnic backgrounds expressed their feelings on racism during the meeting. Some recalled being discriminated against by neighbors, while others felt they have been marginalized in the workplace.
“Racism (in Utah) is not necessarily overt, it is in the small things,” said Mateo Montoya, a Salt Lake County resident.
Kilo Zamora, executive director of the Inclusion Center in Salt Lake City, said ending racism needs to be a community effort. Citizens need to speak out against racism and encourage others to do the same.
“Racism will not solve itself,” Zamora said. “It is an ongoing battle for all of us to engage in.”