Today’s Salt Lake Tribune has an article on a proposed resolution by the conservative Sutherland Institute urging mayors and councils to declare the “natural” family as the fundamental unit of society.
Here is what is in the resolution presented to by Paul T. Mero, President of the institute:
The document calls for cities to “envision a local culture” that:
and . . . young men growing into husbands, home builders and fathers.”
I would like to know who exactly defined what a “natural” family is. Hmmm….could it be the heterosexual men who wrote the christian bible, have been at the helm of all empires, and have served in dictatorships in nations and cultures since the beginning of human existence?
This resolution clearly violates the rights of all people regardless of their view of a “natural” family. It is a slap in the face to women, gays, and people who practice religions other than Christianity. Additionally, in my opinion, it is a resolution designed by a right-wing organization to merge policy making with certain religious values.
Out of 11 Board Members of the Sutherland Institute (the policy making entity of the organization), two are women. Three men and three women make up the staff. Two of the women are graduates of Brigham Young University (as are many of the men) and, as far as I can tell but am not 100% sure, all the Board members and staff are republicans.
The resolution was presented to the North Salt Lake Council. Fortunately there are opponents including the typical organizations like the National Organization for Women and others, but also of ordinary citizens. I like this citizen’s comment:
“I don’t care if the neighbors have no children or 10,” said 70-year-old North Salt Lake resident Dale Elton. “The City Council should stick to what it does best, plenty of water and good sewage.”
It’s also nice to see that other community councils are not putting this on their agendas, and rightly so. This type of resolution has no place in public policy making.
Deanna Dee-Dee Taylor 