Gayle Ruzicka
| Gayle Ruzicka | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Political activist |
| Religion | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |
| Spouse | Don Ruzicka |
Gayle Ruzicka (born c. 1943) is a conservative political activist, talk radio host, and leader in the Utah Eagle Forum.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Ruzicka was born in Nampa, Idaho to a father who was a labor union president active in the Democratic Party. Ruzicka has stated that her family, particularly her mother, were all active in politics at a grass-roots level. She is the mother of 12 children, grandmother of 20, and an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mrs. Ruzicka and her husband, Don Ruzicka, live in Highland, Utah.[1]
[edit] Political life
Ruzicka was involved in politics in a minor way while raising her children, with involvement during the Equal Rights Amendment issue while living in Idaho, and involvement with the Eagle Forum during the 1988 impeachment of Arizona governor Evan Mecham. Ruzicka moved to Utah with her husband and surviving children in 1989. In 1991, she was elected president of the Utah Eagle Forum, the Utah Chapter of the Eagle Forum.
Ruzicka is claimed to be one of the most influential individuals in Utah's political scene[2] and is famous for her phone tree,[3] used to push her political agenda. In 2004, she was part of the Utah delegation to the Republican National Convention.[4] Additionally, Ruzicka hosts the "The Gayle Ruzika Show"[5] a weekly radio show on KTKK "K-TALK" 630 AM[6] addressing conservative political issues in Utah.
Ruzicka's power and her positions on a variety of conservative and social issues including homosexuality have not been without controversy.[7] For example in his blog Queer Gnosis, Troy Williams (labeled a "very militant homosexual man"[8] by Ruzicka) recounts that he encountered Ruzicka in the Senate Chambers of the Utah State Capital Building. According to Williams's blog, he and Ruzicka loudly discussed Utah State Senator Chris Buttars's well documented and controversial comments that compared gay sex to "pig sex."[9]
[edit] Political activities
In 2000, Ruzicka was involved with her daughter Kendra's attempt to form a chapter of the Eagle Forum Collegians on the campus of Utah Valley State College (now known as Utah Valley University). Matthew Hilton, the Utah Eagle Forum's attorney, argued that by following the college's non-discrimination policy, the Eagle Forum Collegians would have their First Amendment rights subverted.[10]
In 2001, she criticized the Salt Lake City Weekly for publishing "same-sex" personal ads and other material that she deemed "distasteful." She unsuccessfully campaigned to have the publication removed from public buildings.
During the 2007 Utah legislative session, Ruzicka led the Utah Eagle Forum in the fight to oppose House Bill 358, which appropriated $1 million for the Utah Department of Health to promote the availability of a cervical cancer vaccine.[11]
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,595103090,00.html?pg=5
- ^ http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,595103090,00.html
- ^ http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,595103090,00.html?pg=3
- ^ http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/rutherfurd-ryall.html
- ^ "KTKK List of Show Names & Archives". KTKK. http://www.k-talk.com/survey-landing.asp. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
- ^ "KTKK List of Hosts". KTKK. http://www.k-talk.com/Hosts.asp. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
- ^ http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,595103090,00.html?pg=2
- ^ Williams, Troy (2009-02-16). "Beware: 'The Very Militant Homosexual'". Queer Gnosis. http://www.queergnosis.com/queergnosis/2009/02/beware-the-very-militant-homosexual.html. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
- ^ Williams, Troy (2009-02-21). "Debating Pig-Sex at the Capital". Queer Gnosis. http://www.queergnosis.com/queergnosis/2009/02/debating-pigsex-at-the-capital.html. Retrieved 2009-05-05.[dead link]
- ^ http://www.mediastudies.org/templates/document.asp?documentID=12006
- ^ http://www.standard.net/live.php/news/99793
[edit] References
- Robinson, Doug (2004-11-06). "Eagle eye: Moral crusader Ruzicka wields 'phone tree'". Deseret News. http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,595103090,00.html.
