Before coming to Utah, my husband and I lived in Kansas City. We aren’t members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
We were just teenagers turned young professionals. We thought we were well-educated, but like many folks, we had areas of ignorance. In some ways, our lives were governed by our lack of knowledge about how entire groups have been treated in this country. Maligned. Shunned. Cast out. Even hunted.
We didn’t know about Missouri Executive Order 44 , also known as the “Mormon Extermination Order.” We only learned about that aspect of American history after moving to Utah, despite having lived in Missouri for more than two decades, having spent a great deal of time in Independence, and having Mormon friends and family members.
That ignorance is on us. I roiled