She was born in New Orleans and moved with her husband to Utah more than three decades ago.
Now, Sandra Hollins represents Utah Legislative District 22, which includes Fair Park, the airport, the proposed inland port, and the new Utah State Prison.
Hollins is the first black female lawmaker in Utah and recently won the Rosa Parks Award from the NAACP for her social work with those needing drug abuse treatment.
Bob Evans sat down with Hollins and asked her three questions:
- There isn't a lot of diversity up on Utah's Capitol Hill. How does that affect the way the legislature handles issues of drug treatment, and homeless.. homelessness?
- As the Republicans and Democrats in Utah deal with each other on Utah's Capitol Hill, do you see them working well together? Or is it a difficult battle between the two parties?
- You've lived in Utah for the past 30 years, and you are well aware of the dynamics of the culture here in terms of the predominant religion's influence, and conservative and liberal politics and the socio-economic divides that are there. From where you sit, and from your experience, do you see us as Utahns drawing closer to each other, or drawing further apart from each other, based on those things?
The full interview with Hollins can be seen below:
