Colorado Progressive Coalition

Alex Landau on the decision not to charge cops who nearly beat him to death

Last week, Denver Manager of Safety Alex Martinez announced that there would be no charges against the three Denver police officers who nearly beat college student Alex Landau to death in 2009. Earlier this week, we spoke with Landau's lawyer, who was troubled by evidence he fears Martinez ignored. ... More >>

10 things to do for $10 this weekend (3 free!), February 15-17

Valentine's Day fell on Thursday this year, but some of the love will carry through the weekend. Whether a V-Day-themed roller-skating party is your jam or you're in the mood for a little friendly Vogue-posing competition, there are plenty of parties to choose from across the city -- and none of the ... More >>

Move to Amend to cheer Amendment 65, argue corporations aren't people at Denver confab

The election may be over, but the campaigns continue. While pot proponents celebrate the passage of Amendment 64 at a national marijuana convention in Denver, backers of another successful initiative, Amendment 65, will also be gathering in town for a 2012 Grassroots Democracy Convergence to push fo ... More >>

Denver Diner case: Mayor Michael Hancock says reforms needed at Civil Service Commission

Asked about the Denver Civil Service Commission's reinstatement of two police officers fired for a billy-clubbing and macing incident at the Denver Diner, Mayor Michael Hancock says it's time to re-evaluate the commission's disciplinary hearings process. His comments only add to pressure on the comm ... More >>

Denver Diner: Attorney, witness of brutality incident decry accused cops' back-to-work order

Update: Last week, we noted that Denver police officers Ricky Nixon and Kevin Devine had been given the go-ahead by the Denver Civil Service Commission to hit the streets again despite having been fired last year for their actions in the 2009 billy-clubbing and macing incident at the Denver Diner. H ... More >>

Alonzo Ashley's family sues police, zoo for emotional, financial costs

One year after his death, Alonzo Ashley's family has filed a lawsuit on his behalf in U.S. District Court. A year ago this month, Ashley died of a heart attack and respiratory arrest after a skirmish at the Denver Zoo in which Denver Police officers contact-tased him. Fronted by his mother, Gail Wat ... More >>

Alex Landau beating: Denver cops puts case on pause as FBI investigates

Update below: Alex Landau talks about the news. Three years-plus since Alex Landau was beaten bloody after being pulled over for what officers cited as an illegal left turn, and a year since he was

Prax(us)' Magalie Lerman turns history of exploitation into outreach

Editor's note: This is the latest profile in Kelsey Whipple's ongoing series highlighting local political activists. The first time Magalie Lerman knew she had a drug problem was not the first time she overdosed. Nor did she realize the second time. Today, Lerman is two and a half years sober and t ... More >>

AM 760 show Weekend Wisdom centers on progressive Hispanic voices

When AM 760 dropped popular progressive host Mario Solis-Marich late last year, fans freaked. The loss, propelled by budget cuts, incited protests against the station and its host company, Clear Channel, fueled by fear that Denver's Hispanic community had lost one of its voices in the media. And whi ... More >>

Alex Landau refuses to re-enact Denver cop beating

On January 29, 2009, Alex Landau was brutally beaten by Denver cops after they pulled him over for what they said was an illegal left turn -- but he charged was racial profiling. And the City of Denver agreed -- or at least was worried enough about the federal lawsuit Landau filed to settle with La ... More >>

Colorado Immigrants Right Coalition's Julien Ross discusses his "spider bite moment"

Editor's note: This is the latest profile in Kelsey Whipple's ongoing series highlighting local political activists. For his first job, a preteen Julien Ross sold lemonade and lied about it. Or at the very least, he didn't tell the whole truth about it. The juice came from freshly squeezed lemons, ... More >>

Photos: May Day general strike marked at Civic Center Park

Update, 3 p.m. May 1: Today, hundreds of protesters took the day off from work and school to spend it with Occupy Denver in Civic Center Park. For the local movement and its community partners -- the Mercury Cafe included -- May Day began at noon with a march and rally and will continue until dusk, ... More >>

Belinda Garcia founded Sisters of Color United For Education as a second family

Editor's note: This is the latest profile in Kelsey Whipple's ongoing series highlighting local political activists. The first time Belinda Garcia was confronted by racism, she was in a public pool. During elementary school, she, her parents and four siblings walked into a Denver YMCA and stood the ... More >>

Occupy Denver: ACLU demands formal investigation of police conduct, pepper ball guns

This morning, the ACLU of Colorado requested a formal investigation of the Denver Police Department's conduct with Occupy Denver during the past six and a half months. The complaint, delivered to Police Chief Robert White and the Office of the Independent Monitor, cites both First Amendment freedoms ... More >>

Carolyn Bninski channels decades of progress at Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center

Editor's note: This is the latest profile in Kelsey Whipple's ongoing series highlighting local political activists. They were wearing black, and they carried coffins. This is Carolyn Bninski's strongest early memory of political activism, a lifestyle she would later take up and pursue for more th ... More >>

Police brutality: Witness upset Denver Diner cops to be back on street

New update below: Denver's Civil Service Commission has determined that officers Ricky Nixon and Kevin Devine, fired over an alleged brutality incident at the Denver Diner in 2009, can return to the street while the city appeals their reinstatement. This decision aggravates Colorado Progressive Coal ... More >>

Eleanor Dewey of Colorado Anti-Violence Program on the power of the (young) people

Editor's note: This is the latest profile in Kelsey Whipple's ongoing series highlighting local political activists. When Eleanor Dewey dropped out of Aurora's Grandview High School her sophomore year, the decision was an easy one. As a young trans woman who felt no connection to her coursework, he ... More >>

Video: Occupy Denver collecting material for possible documentary

Visitors to Occupy Denver's website will notice that the local chapter of the national movement has increased its online persona in recent months. Accompanying its newly redesigned site is a push for more extensive coverage of the group's events that includes more frequent actions and educational op ... More >>

Bennie Milliner, Road Home executive director, channels military experience in new role

Bennie Milliner.​Editor's note: This is the latest profile in Kelsey Whipple's ongoing series highlighting local political activists. Road Home executive director Bennie Milliner's career in service began the day he saw Calvin step out of his brand new, canary-yellow Chevy Impala. Emerging in ... More >>

Colorado Common Cause's Elena Nunez: "We have such opportunities because we're in crisis"

Elena Nunez.​Growing up and watching Crossfire in Tempe, Arizona, 33-year-old Elena Nunez learned to trust her local government approximately as far as she could throw it. In the late '80s, Arizona Governor Evan Mecham was impeached on grounds of misusing funds and obstruction of justice, and ... More >>

Occupy the Courts: Move to Amend announces a national day of protest

​It was the sixteenth anniversary of the Million Man March, October 16, 2011, and thousands gathered in Washington for a ceremony dedicating the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. Steve Justino, co-chair of Colorado's Move to Amend, remembers sitting by his computer in Colorado losing sleep -- ... More >>

Immigrant activist groups protest Wells Fargo and its investment in private prisons (PHOTOS)

Jeanette Vizguerra.​Many people Wells Fargo claims to serve gathered to protest its investment in private prison companies such as GEO, Inc., which owns an Aurora detention center. Protesters marched on an East Colfax branch as part of a national day of action to educate people about the hypoc ... More >>

Jeanette Vizguerra deportation decision delayed, but supporters promise fight will go on

Vizguerra.​Jeanette Vizguerra, a small business owner, community leader and mother of three citizen children, will have to wait until 8:30 a.m. on July 13 to find out if she will be allowed to stay in this country. Vizguerra's final deportation hearing was scheduled to take place at 8:30 this ... More >>

Protest planned for Jeanette Vizguerra, community leader and mom facing deportation

Rights for All PeopleJeanette Vizguerra.​Jeanette Vizguerra, who has lived in Colorado for more than fourteen years, is the mother of three citizen children, owns a small business and is very involved in her community. She also lives in this country illegally and faces her final deportation co ... More >>

Alex Landau was pulled over for making an illegal left turn and ended up beaten bloody

Colorado Progressive Coalition & activist groups' dance party for voting, civic obedience (photos)

​Westword photog Johnny Molfetta gets around. On the same day he took snaps of a drug-free-pledging kids at the Chatfield corn maze, he captured a tribute to civic obedience by Colorado Progressive Coalition and other groups at the Webb Building. The idea: to encourage folks to vote against ba ... More >>

Arizona immigration bill: Colorado students plan afternoon protest walkout

An image from ColoradoImmigrant.org featuring participants from a previous event.​Yesterday, Denver Public Schools announced on a ban on all work-related travel to Arizona due to the recent passage of a controversial immigration bill that Republican gubernatorial hopeful Scott McInnis digs and ... More >>

More complaints about new Denver Police Department reporting system

In the February Message column "Denver Police Reports Harder to Get Under New System," representatives of the Denver Police Department insisted that the approach to digitizing incident reports, as opposed to making copies available in a press room, would be more useful and convenient for media and l ... More >>

The Flobots rise and shine

Recreate '68 Plans to Do Just That

Chicago in 1968 was a place of violence and chaos. Some activists would like to re-create those good old days.

Catch and Release

One Nation Enlightened wants just one thing from Denver cops: their business cards.

Civics Disobedience

A teacher at Thornton High School gets a lesson in social studies.

The Next Test

Manual High School earned extra credit for surviving the end of busing. But can it survive the CSAP?