08-03-2025
Utahns made repeated trips to the state's Capitol to make their voices heard this session
A crowd holds a pride flag during a LBGTQ+ rights protest at the Utah State Capitol on the last day of the legislative session, Friday, March 7, 2025. (Photo by Alex Goodlett for Utah News Dispatch)
Utahns did not sit idly by as lawmakers worked to pass bills affecting the lives of groups like the LGBTQ+ community and public sector union members. Instead, these groups and their supporters showed up in numbers at times reaching the thousands to make their voices heard throughout Utah's 45-day legislative session.
On Friday, the last day of the session, three separate demonstrations took place — one in support of federal funding for science and two in support of LGBTQ+ rights.
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Demonstrators at Utah's Capitol this session also had their eyes on the federal government. Scientists, researchers and students showed up in a nationally organized 'Stand Up for Science' demonstration to speak out against federal funding cuts to the National Institute of Health that the Trump administration is trying to impose.
'This work is inherently beneficial to everyone, and de-prioritizing it by making funding decisions that negatively impact us is a decision that will continue to be felt for years,' Kailey Mahoney, a master's student at the University of Utah, said during the event.
Utah's unique landscape was a focal point for several speakers at the event, with one calling Utah's national parks 'under attack.' The Trump administration has begun the process of firing 3,400 U.S. Forest Service Workers and, according to reporting from The Salt Lake Tribune, at least 17 Utah national park workers have been fired.
'We're not going to let that slide. We are not going to go down without a fight,' James Carter, a science communicator and social scientist, said. 'We are going to stand up for science today and going forward every day.'
An hour later on Friday, self-described Salt Lake City drag entertainer Veronika DaVil independently organized a demonstration for the last day of the session. They also led a similar demonstration at the beginning of the session when HB269, which has now been signed into law, was being introduced. The law requires students to live in dorms that align with their biological sex and faced harsh criticism from the LGBTQ+ community, who called it discriminatory and harmful.
Starting on the south steps of the Capitol, dressed in a shimmery, rainbow pantsuit, DaVil led a group of around 100 people into the building to the rotunda steps outside the House chamber, where people chanted, listened to speakers and put on an impromptu fashion show.
'Hate is taught, and (lawmakers) are choosing it over and over and over,' DaVil said. 'We gathered the first day of the legislative session because we knew there would be anti-trans and anti-queer laws, and guess what — there were a lot.'
In response to both House and Senate passage of HB77, a bill that if signed by Gov. Spencer Cox would ban pride flags from being displayed in K-12 classrooms and on all government buildings, the Utah Pride Center later Friday unfurled a 200-foot pride flag outside the Capitol.
Troy Williams, executive director of Equality Utah, told protesters that even though HB77 did pass, there were other bills 'killed' including one that would have banned public funding for transgender medical procedures and another that would have 'stigmatized the work of drag queens.'
Williams added that individuals can still wear pride flags in classrooms and made a promise to protesters.
'We are not giving up this work. We will work, whether we have to go to the court or whatever mechanism,' he said. 'I promise you all that the pride flag will fly downtown at City Hall during the (Pride) festival.'
The queer community wasn't the only group outraged at lawmakers this year.
Public union members vehemently opposed HB267, a bill that bans public sector unions, like those representing police, firefighters and teachers, from collective bargaining. Cox signed the bill into law on Feb.14 despite pleas from union members for the Republican governor to veto it.
Union members made their voices heard by showing up to committee meetings, shouting outside of the Senate floor and filling the rotunda in large numbers.
Now, members of the newly formed Protect Utah Workers coalition are attempting to run a referendum on HB267, which they can do if a bill did not receive two-thirds majority support from both the House and Senate.
Utah was also not exempt from national public outcry against the Trump administration and Elon Musk. On Feb. 5, around 700 people gathered to protest Musk's insertion into the federal government, deportation efforts, abortion care bans, restrictions on LGBTQ+ rights, racism, fascism, and Trump himself.
When asked about this demonstration, House Minority Leader Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City, told reporters at the time that activism must be followed by voter participation.
'I think it's important that people peacefully protest. I think it's their right, this is the people's house,' Romero said. 'I think it's important for people to show up for that, but also they need to show up to the polls.'
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