Gayle Ruzicka (born c. 1943) is a conservative

political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...

talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featu ...

host, and leader in the Utah

Eagle Forum Eagle Forum is a conservative interest group in the United States founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972 and is the parent organization that also includes the Eagle Forum Education and Legal Defense Fund and the Eagle Forum PAC. The Eagle Forum has ...

Biography

Ruzicka was born in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

to a father who was a labor union president active in the

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. 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 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

. Mrs. Ruzicka and her husband, Don Ruzicka, live in

Highland, Utah Highland is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. It is approximately south of Salt Lake City and is part of the Provo– Orem Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to the 2010 census the population was 15,523, a 90.0% increase o ...

Political life

Ruzicka was involved in politics in a minor way while raising her children, opposing the Equal Rights Amendment while living in Idaho, and later worked to oppose the 1988 impeachment of Arizona governor

Evan Mecham Evan Mecham ( ; May 12, 1924 – February 21, 2008) was an American businessman and the 17th governor of Arizona, serving from January 5, 1987, until his impeachment conviction on April 4, 1988. A decorated veteran of World War II, Mecham was a ...

. Ruzicka moved to Utah with her husband and children in 1989. In 1991, she was designated president of the Utah Eagle Forum, the Utah Chapter of the

. Ruzicka is claimed to be one of the most influential individuals in Utah's political scene and is famous for her phone tree, used to promote her political agenda. In 2004, she was part of the Utah delegation to the Republican National Convention. Additionally, Ruzicka hosts "The Gayle Ruzicka Show" a weekly radio show on KTKK "K-TALK" 630 AM addressing conservative political issues in Utah. Ruzicka's power and her positions on a variety of conservative and social issues including homosexuality have caused controversy.

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. In 2001, she criticized the ''

Salt Lake City Weekly ''Salt Lake City Weekly'' (usually shortened to ''City Weekly'') is a free alternative weekly tabloid-paged newspaper published in Salt Lake City, Utah. It began as ''Private Eye''. ''City Weekly'' is published and dated for every Thursday by ...

'' 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. In 2012, Gayle Ruzicka acted as a prominent proponent of HB 363, a Utah State house bill that would prohibit public schools from teaching students about sex. This bill would give schools the option to either teach abstinence only or not provide sex education at all. This bill was met with opposition by some Utahns. Opponents of the bill organized an online petition which received more than 40,000 signatures. The bill was vetoed by Gov. Herbert.

Footnotes

References

External links

Utah Eagle Forum
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruzicka, Gayle 1943 births American activists Living people People from Highland, Utah Utah Republicans Eagle Forum 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American women Latter Day Saints from Idaho Latter Day Saints from Utah People from Nampa, Idaho Idaho Republicans