Migrants Protest at Capitol and City Hall, Demanding Work and Stop to Encampment Sweep

The migrant camp on the edge of LoHi. Evan Semón Photography

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Mayor Mike Johnston may have met the initial goal of House1000, moving over a thousand individuals off the streets and inside by the end of 2023, but there are many more challenges ahead, including handling the influx of migrants who have added to the crunch on Denver's housing and homelessness services.

On January 1, dozens of migrants marched to the State Capitol to ask for help, including safe camping zones and temporary work permits. They'll be back at the Denver City and County Building at 5 p.m. today, to demand that the city cancel the sweep it has planned for the encampment at 26th and Zuni tomorrow, January 3, where hundreds of migrants now live after being timed out of hotel stays at the nearby Quality Inn.

Over the past year, Denver has seen more than 35,000 migrants come to the city, and Johnston has joined with mayors of other major cities to ask the federal government for help.

"We've been doing it for a year, and we're tired," Jon Ewing, spokesperson for the Denver Mass Care Department Operations Center, told Westword last month. "We're trying to provide what we can with what we have. We have limited funding, we have limited resources, but we've been going for a year now. It's not required, but they're coming here, they're asking for help, Texas is busing them here, and we've tried to treat them like human beings."

Keep reading for photos of that encampment and yesterday's protest.

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The encampment stretches for two blocks.

Evan Semón Photography

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Migrants have camped outside the motel.

Evan Semón Photography

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Migrant camp outside the Quality Inn.

Evan Semón Photography

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Many migrants have timed out of the duration they can stay in the motel at 26th and Zuni.

Evan Semón Photography

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Migrants gather at a gas station by the encampment.

Evan

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Demonstrators head to the Colorado Capitol to ask Governor Jared Polis for help for migrants.

Evan Semón Photography

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Demonstrator at the Colorado Capitol demanding better treatment of migrants.

Evan Semón Photography

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The encampment is set to be swept on January 3.

Evan Semón Photography

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Signs from the January 1 demonstration.

Evan Semón Photography

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Demonstrators will be at the City and County Building today.

Evan Semón Photography