It allegedly started with a counterfeit $20 bill, a pack of cigarettes and a viral video of a Black man dying in police custody in Minnesota.
But the murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, just one year ago has echoed far from the streets of Minneapolis and into national calls for police reform and renewed efforts of racial justice throughout the United States.
During the past year, journalists and writers for Deseret News have reported on those difficult conversations of social justice and policing. Some of those stories are found here, and they aim to capture the pain and heartbreak of loss and the generations-old sting of racism.
KSL TV
SALT LAKE CITY Legislators approved two resolutions on Wednesday to urge the Utah State Board of Education to ban what lawmakers consider harmful critical race theory concepts.
The resolutions were approved despite outcry from community activists and educators, who gathered on the Capitol steps to oppose the resolutions earlier Wednesday morning, and despite Democrats walking out of the House chamber in protest.
The controversial resolutions state some concepts contained in critical race theory degrade important societal values and, if introduced in the classrooms, would harm students learning in the public education system. While not encouraging an outright ban of the theory, the resolutions urge the State School Board to ensure certain concepts aren t taught in Utah schools including:
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Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
Less than a year ago, Lehi resident Matt Gonzalez found himself in a “surreal” nightmare as a fast-moving wildfire approached homes along Traverse Mountain.
“It looked like the whole neighborhood was going to catch on fire at one time because, honestly, as close as our houses are if one house caught fire it would have been like a domino effect,” Gonzalez said.
The state experienced 1,547 wildfires in 2020, according to statistics provided by the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, and the total cost to suppress those fires reached $60 million. And an ongoing drought impacting Utah is only increasing fire officials worries that 2021 will be worse.
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Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson, left, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill, Liliana Olvera-Arbon, executive director of the Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault, and Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera listen to speakers at the Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault building in Salt Lake City to mark Denim Day, an event designed to bring awareness to sexual assault on Wednesday, April 28, 2021.
Ashley Imlay, KSL.com
When sexual assault survivor Alli Fields told her friends what had just happened to her, she said their reaction downplayed the gravity of the situation. They thought it just sounded like a bad date.