Something rotten in Kanab

I’ll admit it—for most of my life, I’ve been terrified of the state of Utah.  Even growing up in Canada, the thought of an entire state which was “controlled” by a religious group (that was my interpretation of the situation), terrified me.  I’ve never wanted anything to do with organized religion, and I associate it with all sorts of controlling behaviours, a la, A Handmaid’s Tale.  After moving to the southwestern US and getting to know many Mormons personally, though, I started to view Utah as pretty harmless.  The Mormons I got to know, like my dentist and his staff, always treat Flippy and I very well.  I also discovered that Utah was home to “progressive” places like Park City, progressive bloggers like Dooce, and of course, progressive organizations like Best Friends.  When Flippy and I met some people who worked at Best Friends it was just like meeting old friends from San Francisco, so I was pretty sure Utah had a lot to offer that I’d previously been blind to.  Sure, it was a Red State and would probably always be a Red state, but Nevada doesn’t have a great track record on that front either, yet we still manage to fill our days with gambling, drinking, and strippers (not “we” specifically, as we’d never get any work done if that was the case).

I decided a couple of years ago that my dream was to eventually move to the town of Kanab in southwestern Utah.  It was pretty, housing and land were relatively inexpensive, and it was the home of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.  With a bit of planning, Flippy and I could build a home on 20 or so acres of land for the same price as owning our home here in Vegas, plus we could enjoy a degree of isolation (i.e., no one building subdivisions of 200 homes behind our back wall).  Even in Vegas we do a great deal of our shopping online so we wouldn’t miss having “a mall”, and with Best Friends close by I’d have access to ample opportunities to do volunteer work, and perhaps even paid work.  I’d also know that there were many good veterinarians in the area.  I think we’d have to do without a Starbucks, but otherwise life would probably be okay.  With 20 or so acres of land I could run my own pet rescue or retirement home as well, so it was an idea I’d really embraced.  Unfortunately, the city council in Kanab has rolled up the welcome mat for families like me and Flippy, having passed a “‘Natural Family’ Resolution”.  It basically says that the only good family is one where dad works, and mom stays home to raise a lot of kids.  While the resolution doesn’t say anything specifically “anti-gay”, it’s certainly implied, and the author of the resolution confirms that a gay relationship is not a “natural family”.  The worst part is that while the resolution was shopped around to many cities and towns in Utah, the only one which actually accepted it and passed it was Kanab!  This is exactly the sort of thinking which always frightened me about Utah—I’m afraid of religious extremists, and worry this could open the door to even more restrictions, resolutions, and perhaps even laws.

Frankly, I feel snubbed by Kanab.  I always thought it would be an open-minded place, but what sort of open-minded town would elect those sorts of officials?  I imagined Kanab as being influenced by animal rights activists, vegans, and people who love the environment, but now I find out that it might be a right-wing enclave full of creeps.  I’m happy that many business owners are speaking out against the resolution, but wonder if they would have done so if many people weren’t boycotting Kanab as a travel destination?  It’s just creepy, creepy, creepy, and I want nothing to do with it.  Time to start checking out that real estate in Canada again…

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 04/09 at 09:13 PM

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  1. Hi, Leigh-Ann,
    I read your comment on blurb and I was so saddened to hear that you lost hope in your dream (and understandably so)! I am Mormon, and, as you have discovered, most Mormons are pretty normal, for the most part. However, some are crazy ass holes who think it’s ok to judge everyone and parade those judgements for the world to see how righteous they are. My husband (also a good Mormon) and I will NEVER live in Utah or anywhere that is predominantly Mormon because of people like that. I think that whenever you get a big majority anywhere, some people in the majority act crazy and do stupid things. It’s a by product of group think.
    Don’t give up hope!

    Posted by Ferny Pants  on  04/10  at  09:04 AM

  2. Hello, Ferny (and your Pants)—

    I wrote my blog entry late last night, and I left a couple of things out of it, including the fact that the mayor of Salt Lake City has spoken out against what Kanab has done.  So, I apologize if I came across as sounding as if I blamed “Mormons”, because I was really blaming religious extremists.  The Mormons I’ve gotten to know have been very friendly and respectful with us, and they never try to proselytize, so I thought that maybe Mormons were more concerned with “self-improvement” than trying to “improve” me.  The Kanab issue is disturbing to me because it happened in a small town where it’s easy for extremists to become a majority, so while it puts me off Kanab, it also makes me think twice about my desire to move to a small town.  I think diversity is the key to keeping everything on an even keel. 

    Thanks for taking the time to comment, and for being, you know, “sane”... I do appreciate it :)

    Posted by Leigh-Ann  on  04/10  at  11:47 PM

  3. Well, they’d not want me living there, either. I only have 2 kids and I work at a paying job, to boot. I certainly would feel quite soured on the idea of moving there, but I also wonder how much of this is the result of a small, vocal fringe group mobilizing their voters and passing something horrible in response to members of the community who are more liberal and accepting but are seen as threatening by their views and actions to their (the supporters of the NFR) views of life? Anyway, please don’t give up on all small towns because of this. I probably didn’t put this very well.

    (Hey, Wisconsin has lots of lovely, cheap rural land and the winters can make even the hardiest of Canadians not very homesick. Ask Charles. Madison is very liberal.)

    Posted by Diana  on  04/11  at  05:55 AM

  4. I’ve got this phobia about snow…

    Seriously, I love Canada, and I love woods and forests and lakes, and I think the visual of owning a beautiful cabin on 20 acres in the wilderness is just dreamy.  However, the cold weather has become an issue for me after 15 years in the southwestern US.  I’ve become spoiled.  Although I have wonderful memories of quiet winter days and white Christmas’ and snowmobiling at the cottage, the reality is that I really, really dislike cold and damp weather.  I haven’t been to Canada since 1994 (I haven’t been able to leave the country because of my Green card stuff), but the last time I was home for Christmas it was so insanely cold I thought I would die.  I wore sweaters and sat with a blanket wrapped around me all day, and at night I slept with an electric blanket on “high”.  I was miserable, yet my family were all fine, so I’ve obviously become acclimated to warm weather.  I also worry a bit because on the worst winter days here, when it might be cold and rainy and 38 degrees, I just ache from head to toe with joint pain.  I’m afraid that dealing with a full 4 months of winter might make me feel pretty crummy.

    My mother would really love it if we would move closer, and it’s not out of the question.  Wisconsin isn’t out of the question—I like cheese :)  But I have to say, the warm weather and sunshine here is pretty addictive.  I only notice the heat in the summertime if it’s humid, otherwise 110 degrees is fine.

    One last story to tell… when I first moved to Albuquerque (January 12, 1991), I’d been there for about a week when I woke up one morning and realized that something seemed strange.  I couldn’t put my finger on why I felt out of sorts, but then I realized that the sky was blue.  Every morning since I’d arrived in Abq I awoke to see the blue sky out the window.  In Toronto the sky is rarely ever just completely cloudless blue, especially not in the middle of winter.  But my first week in NM, I realized I was going to be seeing a lot of blue skies and it was really cool.

    I’m sorry I’m a snow wuss.  Too many incidents of stepping off a snowy curb and having wet slush slop over the tops of my boots, I guess.

    Posted by Leigh-Ann  on  04/12  at  12:35 AM

  5. I am always a little cautious of anyone or any community that holds narrow minded views.  As disappointing as it is.. you are probably wise to look else where.

    Posted by Simply Coll  on  04/12  at  08:29 AM

  6. Politics and Mormons aside, I couldn’t live in “Kanab” because it is, empirically, a dumb name for a town.  Sounds too much like “knob”.  And after all, what’s really most important is aural aesthetics.

    Posted by Helly  on  04/12  at  10:39 AM

  7. If it helps, Helly, the town name is pronounced with an longer “a” sound, so it rhymes with “grab”.  I’m not sure if that makes it better or not, as it also rhymes with words like “flab”, and “stab”.

    Flippy is threatening to buy the dumpster/house next to you, as she’s intrigued by the concept of decorating the lawn with discarded toilets.

    Posted by Leigh-Ann  on  04/12  at  03:12 PM

  8. Stuff like this just STUNS me. Maybe it is because I live in NYC and it is easier here to stay inside the open-minded communities and not pay attention to the rest, but it just blows me away that people can think like this. What is wrong with them???

    Posted by jg  on  04/15  at  02:06 PM
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