Wednesday, January 31, 2024
Utahns dressed as birds give a daily reminder to lawmakers to save the Great Salt Lake
Urban Living
Posted By Babs De Lay on January 31, 2024, 4:00 AM
While you may have been distracted by Sundance/Slamdance movies and movie stars, there's another big show going on right now. It's called the annual Utah State legislative session or better known as "Citizens, hide your wallets!"
I had to slam on the brakes as I drove by the State Capitol building last week. Hovering around that big stone edifice were what I perceived to be massive swans and pelicans circling the building—far from their usual haunts in and immediately around the Great Salt Lake.
As I got closer, I was able to discern that what I was actually seeing was people wearing large white hats made of paper sculptured to look like pelicans and swans, with just necks and heads, some being followed by shorter people (kids) dressed as brine shrimp! WTF? Was someone filming a cartoon up there?
Apparently, there are a group of folks walking around the building twice daily—from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, until March 1—to get a message through to our esteemed legislators that our Great Salt Lake needs all the help we can give her and to save it for the brine shrimp (the lake provides more than any other source for brine shrimp in the world), the birds that feeds off those tiny creatures and for those of us who want to ensure a future of clean or cleaner air along the Wasatch Front.
It reminded me of the Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo and the women in Buenos Aires who have regularly marched since 1977. The group wants answers to the thousands who disappeared during the administration of then-president Juan Peron, who ordered the murders of those who didn't support him, and which led to the children of prisoners being taken away and raised by strangers. Pure dedication to truth and justice.
Even more interesting is the fact that many of the protesters circling the building are from a group called Latter-day Saint Earth Stewardship who believe in their church's teaching to care for God's creations. Others are members of Grow the Flow, Friends of the Great Salt Lake and the Nature Conservancy.
Anyone is welcome to join the friendly walks and dress up! And they encourage everyone concerned about this issue to call their legislators to encourage them to make saving the lake the No. 1 priority for the health of not just birds and bugs but us humans too.
Don't know who's representing you? go to: www.le.utah.gov/GIS/findDistrict to search your address and to see what district you live in and who the elected officials are over your area.
It's nice to see some of my Mormon neighbors taking up the cause, publicly. Hopefully the majority of (white, male, Mormon) legislators will take notice of this flock and work harder to save our lake!
About The Author
Babs De Lay
A full-time broker/owner of Urban Utah Homes and Estates, Babs De Lay serves on the Salt Lake City Historic Landmark Commission. A writer and golfer, you'll find them working as a staff guardian at the Temple at Burning Man each year.
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