Religious, Economic, Political, and Cultural Differences in Utah
Introduction
Utah took almost five decades to be declared as a state of the United States. One of the factors owing to this was the polygamous marriage that the Mormon Church permitted among the people[1]. Brigham, the de facto leader, after the assassination of Joseph, proposed a plan to the Congress that was supposed to be a map of the State of Deseret. The state was however reduced and named the Territory of Utah. The defiance of Brigham Young to follow the rules of the federal state was one of the major reasons that slowed down the statehood of Utah[2]. However, after they agreed to denounce polygamy and Young stepped down, they became the 45th state of the US. Ever since they have been a lot of changes in the religion, economic, political, and culture of Utah.
Religion
Utah is widely known as the Mormon State before and after its statehood on 4th January 1896. This is after Brigham Young led a group of 185 Mormons from Illinois where they were being persecuted and their former leader, Joseph Smith had been murdered. By 1896, the Mormon community had a membership of approximately 250,000[3]. Currently, Utah hosts almost 2 Million members which is one-third of the population of Mormons living in the United States.
Although there are no accusations against Utah being a theocracy, that is, a government ruled majorly by religious activity, it is almost impossible to separate the church from the Utahans. Many of the non-Mormons claim that the Church of the Latter Saints has engulfed almost all of the political activities in the state. Most of the leaders are Mormons which means that majority of the rules they make are in line with the authoritative religion. Furthermore, 72% of the 2 million residents in Utah are Mormons[4]. The second majority group is the Catholics who account for 3.8% of the population. No other religious group has a percentage of more than 1%. Mormon politicians, however, claim that they try to keep matters of the church as far as they can from the government. They have argued that for a country that is heavily controlled by the church, they sure have lesser restrictions on religious matters such as abortion and the sale of alcohol. However, there have been counterarguments that it is only once since the establishment of the religious system in 1830 that the state has gone against the rules established by the Church.
Economic
The early Mormons lay a strong independent economy for the country through the establishment of small industries such as agriculture and handicraft in the mid-19th century. In the 1860s thereafter, with the government allocating more land to settlers in the west, they increased the number of farming activities in the land. The increased level of technologies also led to the discovery of mineral deposits in Utah[5]. This was however an occupation to the non-Mormons because the Mormon culture was against mining activities. This period, therefore, led to the coming in of a considerable amount of investors who exploited the mines that brought in a bit of wealth to the state. The Mormons however continued with their agricultural businesses and mainly livestock farming that was the main source of wealth in the state.
The economic depression in the 20th century was one big blow to Utah’s economy but with the help of other non-profit welfares and the government, the state was able to recover. More farming activities were done after that era to also help in the development of the country’s economy. The discovery of Uranium in the country was another major milestone that greatly helped in the improvement of the country’s economy. Since then, through the 21st century, there have been increased mineral explorations in the State that have greatly attributed to its wealth. Utah is ranked among the topmost states in mineral production[6]. It is for example the only producer of Beryllium in the federal state and the highest producer of copper in the world. Most of the copper found in the country is retrieved from Kennecott Bingham Canyon Mine. The state is also known to produce gold, silver, and molybdenum. A lot of brine extracted from the Great Salt Lake is also used for the extraction of salt and other minerals such as magnesium and potassium sulfate which are exported for industrial purposes. Additionally, Utah is also one of the United States’ greatest producer of coal in the West of Mississippi[7]. There have therefore been a significant number of manufacturing industries that have been set up in the country as a result of the extensive minerals in the area.
In terms of the services offered in the state, the tourism, business, military, state, and federal governments are growing at an exponential rate. Attractions such as the region’s fiery, natural arches, and bridges have been one of the major contributors to the development of tourism in the country. As a result of this, the transport sector in the state has been greatly improved through the construction of interstate highways and the renovation of the international airport.
Political
Being under the federal state in 1896, Utah provides some of the basic rules to its Citizens, for example, the Bill of Rights. The federal-state also prohibits polygamous marriage that has been one issue in the Mormon community. The church, however, publicly disavowed polygamy although some of its members still take part in it. Being under the federal government also means that Utah’s citizens get to enjoy equal voting rights and civil rights for its workers.
Utah is headed by a governor who is elected by a lieutenant governor. The governor is elected after every 4 years and has the right to veto a bill except when it is denied by a two-thirds majority of each of the bicameral houses. Utah also has approximately 50 agencies that help in the implementation of the citizens’ rights, which is more than the number it had in the past century. The government still has plans to increase the number of agencies to bring its services closer to the citizens of Utah. In the State, the power of the legislature is dispensed by the Senate, which comprises of 29 senators and the House of Representatives, made up of 75 members[8]. The citizens also have the power to influence the bills that are passed in the legislature by holding referendum polls.
Utah has 29 counties, each of which carries out the administrative, financial, educational, and other tasks according to the laws outlines by the state and the federal government. The forms of municipal government however vary in each state, cities with a population of more than 90,000 citizens have a mayor and a city council. The ones with fewer than 90,000 but more than 15,000 citizens have a mayor and two commissioners while those that have fewer than 15,000 members have a mayor and five council members[9].
Ever since its statehood, Utah continues to be a Republican state. This is mainly because of the conservativeness of the dominant Mormon Culture. There however haven’t been any disputes between the republicans and the democrats. However, Republican presidential candidates have always won the state except for only one time, in the 1952 elections[10]. The Republicans have also been in charge of the gubernatorial positions with the democrats only securing the mayor positions in Salt Lake City most notably during World War II.
Conclusion
There have been significant changes in the religious, economical and political systems of Utah since its statehood. Some elements such as the political system have remained the same and others strengthened further. The Mormon church over the years has for example agreed to divide the homogenous Mormons into political parties as required by the federal state. Slowly by slowly, the once conservative and authoritative religion is becoming flexible to accommodate other diverse groups.
Bibliography
Gordon, Sarah Barringer. “The Mormon question: Polygamy and constitutional conflict in nineteenth‐century America.” Journal of Supreme Court History 28, no. 1 (2003): 14-29.
Bushman, Claudia Lauper, Richard L. Bushman, and Richard Lyman Bushman. Building the Kingdom: A history of mormons in America. Oxford University Press, 2001.
Campbell, David E., and J. Quin Monson. “Following the leader? Mormon voting on ballot propositions.” Journal for the scientific study of religion 42, no. 4 (2003): 605-619.
Pankow, Kristine L., Jeffrey R. Moore, J. Mark Hale, Keith D. Koper, Tex Kubacki, Katherine M. Whidden, and Michael K. McCarter. “Massive landslide at Utah copper mine generates wealth of geophysical data.” GSA Today 24, no. 1 (2014): 4-9.
Butler, Bert Sylvenus, Gerald Francis Loughlin, and Victor Conrad Heikes. Ore deposits of Utah. Vol. 111. US Government Printing Office, 1920.
[1]. Gordon, Sarah Barringer. “The Mormon question: Polygamy and constitutional conflict in nineteenth‐century America.” Journal of Supreme Court History 28, no. 1 (2003): 14-29.
[2]. Gordon, Sarah Barringer. “The Mormon question: Polygamy and constitutional conflict in nineteenth‐century America.”
[3]. Bushman, Claudia Lauper, Richard L. Bushman, and Richard Lyman Bushman. Building the Kingdom: A history of Mormons in America. Oxford University Press, 2001.
[4]. Campbell, David E., and J. Quin Monson. “Following the leader? Mormon voting on ballot propositions.” Journal for the scientific study of religion 42, no. 4 (2003): 605-619.
[5]. Pankow, Kristine L., Jeffrey R. Moore, J. Mark Hale, Keith D. Koper, Tex Kubacki, Katherine M. Whidden, and Michael K. McCarter. “Massive landslide at Utah copper mine generates wealth of geophysical data.” GSA Today 24, no. 1 (2014): 4-9.
[6]. Butler, Bert Sylvenus, Gerald Francis Loughlin, and Victor Conrad Heikes. Ore deposits of Utah. Vol. 111. US Government Printing Office, 1920.
[7]. Butler, Bert Sylvenus, Gerald Francis Loughlin, and Victor Conrad Heikes. Ore deposits of Utah.
[8]. Brown, Adam R. Utah politics and government: American democracy among a unique electorate. U of Nebraska Press, 2018.
[9]. Brown, Adam R. Utah politics and government: American democracy among a unique electorate. U of Nebraska Press, 2018.
[10]. Steger, Wayne P. “The Republican Primaries.” In Campaigning for President 2016, pp. 65-80. Routledge, 2017.