Watch: Gov. Spencer Cox urges Utahns to ‘stand up and speak out against violence’ at U.S. Capitol

SALT LAKE CITY (Jan. 6, 2021) — On his second day in office, Utah Gov. Spencer J. Cox recorded a video message urging Utahns to “stand up and speak out against the violence, against the terrorists, against the evil that we have seen in our nation’s capital today.”

Watch the full video here, or read the transcript below:

Good afternoon, ladies and gentleman, my fellow Utahns.

I come to you this afternoon from the historic Governor’s Mansion with a message I never intended to have to deliver on just my second day on the job.

I don’t have any prepared remarks, but I wanted to speak to you from my heart about what we are seeing across our country today. I am deeply troubled at the chaos, at the devastation, at the cowardly acts of violence that we are seeing in our nation’s Capitol on this day.

As patriots, as Utahns, as Americans, as people who care deeply about each other and care deeply about this great nation, I urge you to stand up and speak out against the violence, against the terrorists, against the evil that we have seen in our nation’s Capitol today.

Now, make no mistake, protesting is a critical piece of American history. It is enshrined in our Constitution. It is a right that we hold and that we bear deeply. I encourage people to exercise that right to peaceably assemble, peaceably come together, to make your voice heard.

But we must condemn in the strongest of terms: violence, personal attacks, the non-peaceful use of peoples’ voice.

Now, fortunately, the protestors here in the state of Utah, so far, have been mostly peaceful. To any of you out there who are considering joining those protests, I ask you to please do so but, again, to do so in the right way — to do so loud, to do so proud, but to do so in a respectful manner and, by no means, resort to violence or property destruction.

I want to thank our first responders, Highway Patrol, Salt Lake City Police Department and other public service officials who are protecting the state’s Capitol and making sure that everyone is safe at these rallies and these protests.

My fellow Utahns, it is not enough now to be silent. It’s not enough to just not participate in the evil that we have seen today. I’m calling on all of you to speak out, to speak up and to let your family, to let your friends, to let your neighbors know, that this is unacceptable. We are better than this in Utah. We are better than this in America. We have been an example to the rest of the world when it comes to our elections, when it comes to the way that we protest, when it comes to the freedoms and the liberties that we so enjoy. And more than ever, we need to show the rest of the world that this is not the way that America does her business. And I trust that Utahns can be that example to the rest of the nation and to the world.

And so today — tonight — I’m asking you to please speak up. Please condemn what you are seeing happening across the country. Whether you are a Republican or a Democrat, whether you voted for the president or voted for someone else, let’s be better. And let’s be better together.

2021 is going to be an incredible year for all of us. We are moving forward through this pandemic. The end is in sight. Our country will come out of this stronger and more resilient than ever before — but only if each of us do our part. So tonight, let’s do our part.

Thank you for your goodness. Thank you for making Utah an incredible place to live. May God bless you. May God bless the great state of Utah. And, especially tonight, say a prayer that God will bless the United States of America.

Thank you.

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