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Social Equity Round Table Brings Focus Back to Park City's DACA Recipients

The Park City Council Round Table last week focused on social equity. The panel consisted of several Latinx community members. It kicked off with Park City Mayor Andy Beerman asking the panel to share their experiences with racism, including Enrique Sanchez, who came to Park City with his parents when he was two years old.

 

Sanchez, a Park City School District graduate, now attends the University of Utah and works for Park City. He is a current Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient, meaning that he’s an undocumented immigrant who has spent most of his life in America. 

 

Sanchez shared experiences growing up in Park City where he was able to integrate successfully. One example is that he became interested in playing football and now, as an adult, he coaches younger kids playing in the program. He says his experiences with racism are nuanced. 

 

“There was a patron who came to complain that maintenance had brought their kids to work,” he said. “So when she went to go check out the executive locker room, that it was actually a member who was Hispanic, and the fact that they just assumed that they were their maintenance people was really, you know, like hard to hear. Because it's like ‘wow, like this is really the only thing that people see us in. This is the only position that members of, even in our community … sees Hispanics as only being housekeepers and maintenance workers.’ To me, I think that what we see most is indirect forms of racism.” 

 

Nineteen-year-old Haidey Onefre, meanwhile, was born in Park City and says when she was younger, she tried to avoid speaking Spanish and was embarrassed to use the language in public. She also points out that at the time, school fees were charged for many required classes, which caused a lot of stress in her family. She recollected some of the discrimination she felt when she started middle school.

 

“Getting dress-coded in school for being brown; if a white person was to wear what a brown person was wearing, especially during Ecker Hill when we were only 12 years old, and like, we were barely being introduced to other people from different schools and all of a sudden we’re all together, but we’re still being treated completely different.” 

 

Sanchez says skin color also disproportionately affects how potential employers perceive Latinx people.

 

“As soon as someone hears that you are Mexican, they automatically assume that you are undocumented,” he said. “So yes, I believe that the color of our skin has a lot to do with it. And for that reason I think that it's important for all of the upcoming adults you know, us young adults, to build up our resumes because it's easier to achieve jobs that way where you can prove yourself on paper before they see you in person to make those generalizations.” 

 

Sanchez points out how difficult it is for Latinx people to participate in community meetings because many must work multiple time-consuming jobs. He says as a student, he learned about civic engagement through Latinos in Action and the Bright Futures programs. Sanchez provided translation for Jaime Mira, who runs the food bank for the Christian Center.

 

“He thinks having more people of color in positions of power, either elected officials or other board members, would really benefit the community and as he says, he believes that it is important that we start at the school level so that we can help these kids and one day them be out leaders,” Mira said through Sanchez.

 

Onefre says many “DREAMers” and people of color like her are willing to do anything to provide for their families.

 

“Something that’s really sat with me since I was young is, like, the adaptability that my community has,” she said. “Some people of color, they will work any job and I feel like that just proves people are here to work. They're not here to do, like, anything else. They want to provide for their family, and they want to work.”

 

Last week’s Park City Council Round Table was a continuation of the community conversation about social equity. The painting of the Black Lives Matter mural on Park City’s Main Street generated a flurry of commentary that Mayor Andy Beerman and the panelists feel should be explored. Beerman says the community can expect more discussion on the issues of social equity.

The Park City Council Round Tabl last week focused on social equity. The panel consisted of several Latinx community members. It kicked off with Park City Mayor Andy Beerman asking the panel to share their experiences with racism, including Enrique Sanchez, who came to Park City with his parents when he was two years old.

 

Sanchez, a Park City School District graduate, now attends the University of Utah and works for Park City. He is a current Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient, meaning that he’s an undocumented immigrant who has spent most of his life in America. 

 

Sanchez shared experiences growing up in Park City where he was able to integrate successfully. One example is that he became interested in playing football and now, as an adult, he coaches younger kids playing in the program. He says his experiences with racism are nuanced. 

 

“There was a patron who came to complain that maintenance had brought their kids to work,” he said. “So when she went to go check out the executive locker room, that it was actually a member who was Hispanic, and the fact that they just assumed that they were their maintenance people was really, you know, like hard to hear. Because it's like ‘wow, like this is really the only thing that people see us in. This is the only position that members of, even in our community … sees Hispanics as only being housekeepers and maintenance workers.’ To me, I think that what we see most is indirect forms of racism.” 

 

Nineteen-year-old Haidey Onefre, meanwhile, was born in Park City and says when she was younger, she tried to avoid speaking Spanish and was embarrassed to use the language in public. She also points out that at the time, school fees were charged for many required classes, which caused a lot of stress in her family. She recollected some of the discrimination she felt when she started middle school.

 

“Getting dress-coded in school for being brown; if a white person was to wear what a brown person was wearing, especially during Ecker Hill when we were only 12 years old, and like, we were barely being introduced to other people from different schools and all of a sudden we’re all together, but we’re still being treated completely different.” 

 

Sanchez says skin color also disproportionately affects how potential employers perceive Latinx people.

 

“As soon as someone hears that you are Mexican, they automatically assume that you are undocumented,” he said. “So yes, I believe that the color of our skin has a lot to do with it. And for that reason I think that it's important for all of the upcoming adults you know, us young adults, to build up our resumes because it's easier to achieve jobs that way where you can prove yourself on paper before they see you in person to make those generalizations.” 

 

Sanchez points out how difficult it is for Latinx people to participate in community meetings because many must work multiple time-consuming jobs. He says as a student, he learned about civic engagement through Latinos in Action and the Bright Futures programs. Sanchez provided translation for Jaime Mira, who runs the food bank for the Christian Center.

 

“He thinks having more people of color in positions of power, either elected officials or other board members, would really benefit the community and as he says, he believes that it is important that we start at the school level so that we can help these kids and one day them be out leaders,” Mira said through Sanchez.

 

Onefre says many “DREAMers” and people of color like her are willing to do anything to provide for their families.

 

“Something that’s really sat with me since I was young is, like, the adaptability that my community has,” she said. “Some people of color, they will work any job and I feel like that just proves people are here to work. They're not here to do, like, anything else. They want to provide for their family, and they want to work.”

 

Last week’s Park City Council Round Table was a continuation of the community conversation about social equity. The painting of the Black Lives Matter mural on Park City’s Main Street generated a flurry of commentary that Mayor Andy Beerman and the panelists feel should be explored. Beerman says the community can expect more discussion on the issues of social equity.

KPCW reporter Carolyn Murray covers Summit and Wasatch County School Districts. She also reports on wildlife and environmental stories, along with breaking news. Carolyn has been in town since the mid ‘80s and raised two daughters in Park City.
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