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Show i f 10 BEYOND CAMPUS TUte fatare EMILY REEDER new definition of consent Legislature introduces MCCALL MASH CONTRIBUTING WRITER WJasatdk STAFF REPORTER On Feb. 3, the Utah State Legislature introduced bill H.B. 74 concerning a consent definition for sexual offenses performed on unconscious victims. The new wording on the criminal code will punish the perpetrators instead of putting the blame on the victims. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Angela Romero (Democrat Salt Lake City). This bill will modify the definition of consent regarding sexual offenses. Utahs current criminal code on sex offenses states, the victim has not consented and the actor knows the victim is unconscious, unaware that the act is occurring, or physically unable to resist. The bill will remove the line, the victim has not consented, and replace with, the actor knows the victim is unconscious, unaware that the act is occurring, or physically unable to resist. The Utah criminal code also states that the perpetrator - ' - - - - 4 .i.. Community members participated in the Mountain Accord Public Q&A meeting Wednesday, Feb. 11 at Cottonwood High School. The Mountain Accord plans to connect the ski resorts in Big and Little Cottonwood Canyon with trails and a transit system. Community members and environmental enthusiasts gathered at the Mountain Accord Q&A meeting to hear about the proposal to connect ski resorts and to voice their opinions on the future of the Wasatch Mountains. The meeting was held on Feb. 11 at Cottonwood High School. In the past there, has been many proposals for linking ski resorts of the Wasatch Mountains. The most popular were SkiLink and ONE Wasatch, which both ultimately failed. The difference between the Mountain Accord and the past proposals is that instead of just connecting resorts by lifts or gondolas, it proposes to connect recreation and economic centers via transit, trails and tunnels. Unlike the past proposals, all features of the Mountain Accord will be used The basic transportation features as noted on the Proposed Central Wasatch Blueprint year-roun- d. include: High capacity transit in the Little Cottonwood CanyonPark City corridor. Transit incentives and automobile disincentives including parkingpricing strategies. Year-roun- d local bus service in Cottonwood Big Canyon. Fast transit service from the airport to the Park City area via members. With the increasing populations in cottonwood canyons, I was excited for the opportunity of taking something like this on, said Dave Whittekiend, forest supervisor of the National Forest. If we can reach a fairly broad consensus on how we want to move forward, my agency is very key in the next step of that, which is going through the NEPA process. The NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) process requires federal agencies to consider environmental outcomes of planned actions, see what factors affect the environment positively or negatively, and take necessary steps to avoid or lessen impact where possible. Cassie Davis, junior nursing major and snowboard team member, voiced her concerns about construction time and the areas affected by the proposed Uinta-Wasatch-Cac- he knows that as a result of mental disease or deficit, the victim is at the time of the act incapable either of appraising the nature of the act or of resisting it. The bill also plans to remove, knows that as a result of mental disease or deficit, and replace with, the victim is at the time of the act incapable either of appraising the nature of the act or of resisting it. During the committees meeting, Rep. Brian Greene Pleasant Grove) (Republican showed concern. If an individual has sex with their wife while she is unconscious...a prosecutor could then charge that spouse with rape, theoretically, Greene said. That makes sense in a first date scenario, but to me, not where people have a history of years of sexual activity. For others, this is not the case. The fact that our lawmakers are questioning this logic is shocking, said Anabel - Alvarado, senior and president of Westminsters Feminist Club. Having sex with someone who is unable to consent, which includes being unconscious, is rape. Period. It doesnt matter if the two have just met, have a steady relationship, or are even married. After backlash from the community, Rep. Greene released a statement saying: Im not at all trying to justify sexual activity with an unconscious person. Its abhorrent to me. Rep. Greene still questioned whether it is always rape saying it is "dependent only upon the actors knowledge that the individual is unconscious. The committee, despite Rep. Greenes response, passed the bill with his consent. Have an opinion? Send a letter to the editor at forumeditor westminstercollege.edu Sagas' Space to host peiffor i&aasices on race, cultae, identity STAFF rpORT?RN ' plan. I identify as both a snowboarder and splitboarder, and my favorite spot to go splitboarding is Grizzly Gulch, Davis said. If they follow through with Mountain Accord, I would no longer get to enjoy an area in the mountains that can only be accessed by hiking or snowmobiling, and we would have the small amount of accessible wilderness of Improved transit service on US the Wasatch taken away and between Quinns 40 and Junction and Kimball Junction. developed on. Improved transit connections in Right now, Grizzly Gulch is private land but is under Summit County. Shuttle service in Mill Creek consideration to become public. For me, it was a very Canyon. transit exciting project to work on and High capacity Salt connections in the eastern something I think will be historic and percipient setting, said Dave Lake Valley. access and Safety improvements Whittekiend, forest supervisor of the for bicyclists and pedestrians, National Forest. Not only for information taken from Salt Lake, for Utah, but for the blueprint entire country to be able to really : Transportation solutions are being considered within plan and implement and plan for an our future in a place like this. Cottonwood Little Canyon, Thats why Im here. Thats why area known to have issues when avalanches occur. many of my employees are here There was already a participating. avalanche this an Community input is year day occurred where people were encouraged. Comments can be submitted electronically or at two up at Little Cottonwood Canyon until nine at night before they meetings. One is at Eccles Center for the Performing Arts in Park could get down, said Nathan City on Feb. 24 and the second at Rafferty, president and CEO of Ski Utah. If there was a way Skyline High School in Millcreek could to scoot over on Feb. 25. Both meetings are that they Big Cottonwood Canyon and take a from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. After community input bus down to get out of there, that . well. has been noted, the executive provides some benefit, as At the community Q&A board will decide upon the final audience members meeting, blueprint on April 6. For more information wrote down questions check them out the blueprint on and handed anonymously MoimtainAccord.com in to be answered by panel o. I-- 80 Uinta-Wasatch-Cac- he . 1 Racially Just Utah invites the public to participate in their event Race Matters Utah on Thursday, Feb. 26. This event is free and open to the public and they encourage participants to share their experiences with race via the spoken word, poetry and storytelling. Racially Just Utah (RJU), a group created to make racial and ethnic identity a larger conversation in Utah, is hosting an event, Race Matters Utah: Tell Your Story at Sugar Space Studio for the Arts at River District on Feb. 26. From 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., people can tell their personal stories about issues of race, culture and identity in Utah. Participants can see performances of spoken word, music, storytelling, dance and poetry. Storytelling around race lends itself to being really accessible to just about anyone in the community, said Kathy Abarca, member of RJU and Westminster alumna. Were hoping a really honest dialogue about race develops from this event. At Westminster, much of this dialogue has already started. Westminster students responded to the discussion about race by peacefully demonstrating with a walkout. The demonstration was also a response to the recent rise in discussions of police brutality, especially among minorities. RJU said it hopes to further the motions for change that have begun by continuing to push for legislation and other measures to ensure racial equity and justice for Utahns. Westminster students have continued to lend their support and get involved in the discussion about race in other ways. Willy Palomo, senior English major, has won several awards for his poetry about race and his personal experiences with prejudice. Pratik Raghu, senior marketing major, led a march in downtown Salt Lake last fall as a peaceful demonstration against police brutality. Raghu and Palomo are both leaders at Westminster in a growing discussion about race and the ingrained prejudices that Americans still face. Students and community members are encouraged to sign up to perform at the Race Matters Utah event. With several hours of open mics and planned performances, it shows that there are a lot of people who care and have stories to share that revolve around race in Utah, said Kathy Abarca, RJU member. It shows that race isnt something that were past as a society. We just want to create a safe space to talk about it. The racematters event will take place on Feb. 26 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Sugar Space, located at 130 S. 800 W. Anyone who wishes to watch or participate is welcome to attend. This event is free and open to the public. To sign up to perform, email; raciallyjustutahgmail. com |