Iโm so grateful for our community, for everyone who poured their hearts and souls into this movement. I will not stop fighting alongside my community for a city that truly cares for all of its people, because District 9 and Denver are my heart, always.โค๏ธ
It's official: our city has cut all ties with GEO Group โย a private prison company that profits from human rights abuses across the country.
#copolitics
#AbolishICE
I cannot believe that we are in 2020-in a global pandemic and housing crisis--and a majority of Denver City Council members are still trying to keep it illegal to live with "too many" unrelated blood relatives. I need back up ya'll! I hope you are watching and planning to run!
I am physically sick to my stomach. Council just approved a ban on CCW in parks that'll justify racial profiling & responding guns drawn to allegations of a gun. No proof needed. No data backing this ban except that last year Black ppl had the highest rate of CCWs approved.Shame
I just announced that I'll bring legislation banning police use of chemical weapons (including teargas, mace, pepper spray), rubber bullets/bean bags, water cannons, sonic/ultra-sonic weapons, and banning purchase of weapons, along with their use.
We'll need a movement to win.
If you were brutalized by
@DenverPolice
yesterday, I apologize on behalf of City leadership who will not. You have rights. Please file a complaint with the Independent Monitor and secure representation. Nobody deserves this gov sanctioned violence.
To residents and constituents who came to council tonight and STAYED beyond their comments, I hope you all witnessed what happens the minute the public turns exits. If it were not for your presence for the votes, everything I called out would've passed. Thank you for staying!
"...there ainโt shit you can do to protect yourself. You canโt be good enough. You canโt pull your pants high enough. You canโt play enough white classical instruments. You canโt be gentle enoughโฆYou canโt be anything enough to override your Blackness."
@elisabeth
Well, well, well....looks like DPD got salary increases via arbitration. It took the arbitrator all of a day to decide after a meeting where no councilmembers were allowed. Now that it's not a secret, I've got receipts of the whole rigged process to share.
Oh the irony of being called "reckless and irresponsible" for initiating bill on behalf of thousands of Denverites who want a PEACEKEEPING Dept instead of a Police Department. ๐๐๐๐พ Again, I cant make this up. Colleagues "surprised" & want "engagement." ๐Where yall been?๐ต
This is a reckless and irresponsible proposal, the details of which have not been shared, and ignorant of the reforms we have already undertaken in Public Safety.
I think it's common knowledge by now that most protests across the country were infiltrated by white supremacists and/or cops....but this photo RIGHT HERE reminded me to do a PSA. The ppl you want us to think did this----they don't say "whitey"...IJS...we ๐you...
#stepyourgameup
If DPD's abusive behavior hasn't disturbed you yet, this is Denver Police on video using a baton to stab someone in their rectum. This is the victim's testimony.
Yesterday Republican Douglas County Commissioner
@LoraThomasCO
posted on her Facebook that I โled recent violent riots in Denver.โ
I donโt lead riots โ I lead protests that are protected under the first amendment of the constitution Republicans claim to love. โ (THREAD)
@Milky_Puff
There was no case. There was literally not a single data point justifying. Not a single known gun crime in Denver--EVER- committed by a CCW. Less than 20 CCWs revoked in over 16K issued and none had any evidence that they were revoked for a gun crime.
If you are outraged, DO YOUR RESEARCH! Attorney General Daniel Cameron said his investigation determined that Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove were justified in their actions killing an innocent women in HER home. The system is working as designed.
Daniel Cameron is on Donald Trumpโs short list as replacement of
#RGB
on the Supreme Court. The same man who decided to not charge the officers responsible for killing
#BreonnaTaylor
. Vote.
Let's be clear, anyone can have an AirBnB in any neighborhood...meaning you can have new random people in and out all the time and profit being generated as long as the homeowner gets a permit BUT we refuse to allow 3 couples to be roommates. This is real. ๐คฆโโ๏ธ๐คฏ
The fact that the Mayor would appeal a judge's decision is more justification for repealing the ban altogether so we stop wasting more and more money on the Mayor's tantrums. The courts have ruled against your inhumanity on this multiple times. Stop.
NEW: City of Denver files for emergency court order that would allow for sweeps of homeless camps without notice. Judge ruled this week that Denver must provide notice to people living in the homeless camps.
#9NEWS
#copolitics
This is the Jeep and the men who drove their car through peaceful protesters threatening the lives of hundreds who were standing up against white supremacy and police brutality.
DPD is asking us to approve $2.5mil for DPD uniforms for a 3 year contract period. New recruits are allotted $10,800 per recruit for uniform expenses. ๐ง Even school kids have to pay for their own uniforms & supplies--why wouldn't officers pay for theirs?
Philadelphia's city council voted to apologize for the 1985 bombing of a Black neighborhood.
Police dropped combat explosives on members of Black liberation group MOVE, who were living in a row house. 11 people died โ including 5 children โ and fires left 250 people homeless.
If you want to understand what is happening in our country, take an hour of your time to watch the most brilliant synthesis of how U.S. inequality has been created & maintained in
@noamchomskyT
Requiem for the American Dream
THIS is exactly why we need to shift to ranked choice voting. If we had this system in place and your 1st choice dropped out, your 2nd choice would've ascended to being your 1st choice. Your votes would count. If your candidate dropped out, your vote doesn't count.
๐That moment when the literal definition of TRANSPARENCY is condemned by the Mayor you elected....to get this....BE TRANSPARENT. ๐ค๐
Like I said before, I cannot make this stuff up...this is real government. The Mayor is mad at constituents GETTING INFORMATION. ๐ฑ๐คฏ
๐๐๐
During todayโs presser,
@MayorHancock
threw some not-so-subtle shade at
@CandiCdeBacaD9
for organizing protests against encampment sweeps and such. She threw it right back this afternoon:
I used to be a proud
@Daniels_Fund
scholar, then I learned their politics & was then just grateful, saw 2019 scholarship Qs & now I'm appalled. Filtering low income teen applicants to make sure they are patriotic enough 2 believe being poor is their fault.
#twisted
#xenophobic
All I can say is that Denver needs to look itself in a mirror. We missed the best opportunity of a generation for more of the same. Everyone wants to be mad at the status quo but nobody wants to do the work to stand up against it and put egos aside. Shame on us. Now we get nada๐ฉ
Yes, I finish Denver City Council to tune into
@AuroraGov
City Council's vote on min. wage. It's appalling how we are. ๐๐ค
Make no mistake, min wage labor is hardly better than sharecropping or slavery. Laborers aren't even guaranteed a roof over their head. Capitalism=๐น
If you have been wondering when the Office of the Independent Monitor would be reporting on DPD investigations from the brutality all summer, December 9th is the day he will report to City Council in the Safety Committee at 10am. There will be public comment so sign up.
Someone was complaining about streets not being swept and asked why. Amongst a host of reasons I kinda think if DOTI's job hadn't been so recently hyper- focused on freezing days on sweeping PEOPLE, they'd have time and resources to sweep SNOW off of streets. Just a thought...๐คท๐พโโ๏ธ
It is fascinating to hear people call themselves "entrepreneurs" and "innovators" yet complaining about increasing min wage. Correction, you are a thief. You "steal" someone else's labor to make a profit. Without exploiting laborers u just admitted u'd go out of business.๐๐พ๐คฆ๐พ๐๐พ
Yes, I finish Denver City Council to tune into
@AuroraGov
City Council's vote on min. wage. It's appalling how we are. ๐๐ค
Make no mistake, min wage labor is hardly better than sharecropping or slavery. Laborers aren't even guaranteed a roof over their head. Capitalism=๐น
Hey protesters, you have a captive audience at city council. We meet with doors open to the public EVERY MONDAY at 5:00/5:30pm and committees meet Tuesdays 10:30am & 1:30pm & Wednesdays 10:30am & 1:30pm. Yesterday's mtg is moved to Thursday at 9am due to the protest.
"Experts say when people who are homeless find access to stable housing and other basic necessities, the likelihood of them being charged with a crime goes down."
How dare the Legislative (council) branch of gov be given any ability to hold the Executive (mayor) branch accountable?!๐๐๐พ๐คฆ๐พ
When the Mayor throws a Trump-tweet-fit you gotta wonder.
Council referred 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F, 2G, 2H, 2I, 2J because equal branches of gov IS democracy.
Ballots are arriving in the mail and it's our opportunity to remove Trump's dysfunctional government in Washington. But two local ballot measures, 2E & 2G, will bring that dysfunction home to Denver.
I may sound like a broken record but until it changes, I'm going to keep saying it. What about our only 84% Latino neighborhood left?! GES didn't even get a single "shared street" & that's as simple as barricades. No real bike network planned, & all we are told is wait our turn.
We want you here
@elonmusk
in Colorado, we are the best of all worlds. Weโre very pro-business, low taxes, also pro-immigration, pro-LGBT, globally-minded. Bright, smart, motivated ppl love to live here.
@Tesla
HQ, Cybertruck, gigafactory look no further!
@kimbal
Why do we continue to think there is a such thing as "gang prevention" and why do we do it only for Black, Brown & Poor kids? Meanwhile, we pat kids on the back for wanting to be cops, be in fraternities/sororities, be a democrat or republican...ALL GANGS! But not a bad thing?๐ค
Hopefully one day we will get to a place in time where we don't actually think that simply having people in seats of power that look like us is racial justice all alone. They ALSO need to be able to do anti-racism work too.
Denver lost tonight when council voted down (again) every single attempt to solve the problems you bring to our attention....but me...I stay smiling because I am loved and love despite the ugliness. We WILL change this city, no matter what it takes.
#onward
โ๐พโค๏ธโ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฝ
"I believe that housing should be a human right, food should be a utility, utilities should be municipally owned, and the entire economy needs to be reimagined in a way that stops the exploitation of land, labor, and natural resources for profit."
#D9
#DenverDecides
Word on the street is there is a sweep planned for Civic Center tomorrow. Just an FYI, I dont have confirmation but you know sometimes NO confirmation IS confirmation. Stay safe peeps.
Last night it was legit all of YOU that gave this whole city including ME something to believe in. I want you all to know the job and be ready to take it from anyone who doesn't represent and re-center the margins. The system counts on us not knowing the game.
@CandiCdeBacaD9
I'm finding fewer and fewer reasons to believe in electoral politics, but the way you kept everyone engaged, broke down the city's power imbalances, and guided everyone through our legislative process is the most encouraging thing I've seen in a really long time. Thank you.
Not a single complaint about Safe Outdoor Spaces (on private space)--not one. In fact, only converted believers in this option and CW Sawyer is voting AGAINST the contract for the only people who have stepped up to address citywide camping in public spaces. I can't make this up.
The city should be embarrassed that installing a single public restroom is press release-worthy 5 years after the pilot project. Itโs absurd to tout one bathroom as such a major accomplishment, while refusing to put portapotties where we actually need them. ๐
#DoBetterDenver
Thereโs a special place in hell for those who say they care about addressing gentrification and displacement but then do nothing about it when itโs time for a vote. They are accelerating gentrification & displacement ACTIVELY. SMDH
This is gross. We need to repeal the Colorado rent control ban asap. Contact us if you are interested @ district9
@denvergov
.org write "repeal rent control ban" in the subject!
Yikes! ๐คฆ๐พโโ๏ธ I hate that Tattered Cover has to be sacrificed but on top of absolutely not getting votes, Kwame is just driving away business too. What is he thinking? Is this real? ๐คฏ
NEW: Denver mayoral candidate
@KwameSpearman
says Denver Police should resume cooperation with immigration agents if possible. Spearman also said unauthorized immigrants commuting to homes outside Denver provides "opportunities for us to apply the letter of the law."
#copolitics
In other news, since they think the public hasn't caught onto Weekly Mayor-Council meetings--will occur IN PERSON at 9:30am tomorrow morning at 9:30am in Parr-Widener on 3rd floor of City & County bldg behind the elevators.
I don't think most people understand what REAL Community Land Trusts are about. They are not about big philanthropy starting orgs to be the owners of land for low-income ppl. They are about community buying land together to protect it from outsiders owning the land. IJS
We will be teaching a whole crew of folks who want to defund the police. I will loop you in! Council does little beyond signing checks for millions every Monday. Mayor writes them, we sign 'em or tear them up. I think we rarely ever tore any up pre 2019.
I love YOU! Thank u for watching weekly Monday night meetings faithfully! I keep telling people, Council is not like Court. It's like professional sports. You don't just wait til your issue is called off the docket, speak and leave--you gotta wait until the end to see if we win.
Oh snap... tonight an attempt to rename Columbus Park to La Raza Park. Italian gentleman said why don't the "La Raza people buy their own park" and name it what they want. ๐คฃ๐คฆโโ๏ธ I think he's missing the point that this land (all of it) was stolen AND la raza built & paid already๐โโ๏ธ
Having an operations meeting--where Council decides on how council operates---and the topic of it seems to be how do we deal with protesters veiled in the need to keep us all "safe"....it's public but not livestreamed, I will keep you all posted via live tweet.
Wow, apparently I'm running for Congress now! ๐๐คฆ๐ฝโโ๏ธ๐ I love it when the political establishment scrambles....don't worry...no "exploratory" committees here. I'm serving D9, not dreaming of the next rung like the status quo politicians you are used to.
The investigation into how Denver police handed this summerโs protests is out. It shows mismanagement, from individual office behavior to systems that made accountability, in some cases,
impossible. Many body cameras were off.
"The solution to homelessness is housing, and weโre proud to partner once again with the
@COCoalition
to fund safe, secure housing with access to services,"
@BrittaFisher
, executive director of
@CityofDenver
's Department of Housing Stability.
1/ We need to talk more about WHY the All-Star game is being moved from Atlanta to Denver this year. The people of Georgia have put their lives on the line, marched, and protested for the right to vote, and yet none of that is acknowledged in this press release.
I'm just here to tell you the secrets they don't want you to know. Tokens, be smart-when they tokenize you, at least take the info and wield it for the rest who weren't "quiet enough," "smart enough," "white enough" or "polite enough" to be chosen as a token. IJS
Last night in between ballot drops, I made a special announcement โจ. And I have a message for
#Denver
: We are ready for whateverโs next in this race as the votes keep coming in.
Watch/read my speech here:
Big news: the city of Denver just issued a temporary use zoning permit for homeless service providers to set up a safe camping site in the parking lot of the First Baptist Church in Cap Hill. Denver's first safe camping site is likely now just weeks away from being stood up.
Final tally! We rec'd a total of 524 letters in opposition and 619 letters of support for Group Living changes tonight. We have hours of testimony tonight. Tune if you want to hear how people advocate for/against segregation in 2021! We begin in 15mins!
We waited too long for a grocery store to come to us, so now weโre making our own from the talents & resources we have right here in our own community! So proud of the work D9โs Food Desert Solutions stakeholder group has been doing to get here! ๐ช๐พโ๐พ๐ฅฐ
Guess since its not just in Denver we can stop talking about the good apples and stay focused on the structural violence perpetuated by people who are never held accountable to the same laws. This looks just like yesterday in Denver.
Because it has worked so well in Denver? ๐๐ All a camping ban means is that campers have to go deeper into hiding away from enforcement into neighborhoods and places farthest from services. ๐คฆ๐พโโ๏ธ
Proposed Camping Ban Ordinance for the City of Aurora to be Introduced on Thursday
I will be introducing an ordinance prohibiting camping in the City of Aurora on Thursday.ย The proposal is already drafted but I want to work with our City Attorney's office to make sureโฆ (1/3)
In case you want to see the "reckless and irresponsible" Peacekeeping idea, click below, then click the "Peace Office" for the bill text City Attorney refused to review because time was too short. ๐ Oh yeah City Attorney is appointed by the Mayor ๐ ๐ค๐ค๐ค
Oh the irony of being called "reckless and irresponsible" for initiating bill on behalf of thousands of Denverites who want a PEACEKEEPING Dept instead of a Police Department. ๐๐๐๐พ Again, I cant make this up. Colleagues "surprised" & want "engagement." ๐Where yall been?๐ต
Once you start paying attention, you cant look away. Anyone who watches weekly knows that this body would never vote for transparency and accountability or REAL racial justice. Too much internalized oppression. But sometimes we need a spotlight for others to see.
If you arent watching Council, you should be! We're "debating" gutting the Fair Elections Fund, a move that members didnt even expect anyone to know about but here they are acting as if it does not reflect twisted priorities. Defund fair elections rather than police?! GT*OH.
if youโre keeping count at home,
@jaredpolis
has:
1) refused to freeze rent/mortgages
2) ordered sweeps of our unhoused from encampments and forcing them to go.....somewhere
3) stated heโd call Trump to send in his secret police if he needs them
Democrats = Republicans in blue
Woohoo!
@denverpost
publicized the accounting I have BEEN trying to show you all! FINALLY the word is getting out to the masses! Denverites will be cheated if we give up this conservation easement, its a developer scam. Vote No on 2-O!
#No2O
By purchasing Tooley Hall halfway house, Denver has also brought public control back to a crucial service that should never have been privatized in the first place.
Many thanks to our D9 reentry advisory group! We will reconvene in the new year to envision new possibilities.
๐จ๐จToday, United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 7 announced that after months at the negotiating table with King Soopers, its members will begin to strike at 5:00 a.m. on January 12, 2022. UFCW 7 has decided to strike for three weeks until February 2, 2022. ๐จ๐จ
We need legal observers at a massive sweep next Monday down at the river on Arkins. We have heard cops have been instructing victims evicted at other sweeps to go down to this site so it is a very large camp that will get scattered about the area. Any supports are welcome.
It was never about any one candidate or campaign. It is about a working-class movement for democratic socialism. โNot me. Us.โ means worker solidarity. Campaigns end, movements endure. Join DSA today:
#BiggerThanBernie
#JoinDSA
#TrySocialism
Currently in Council we are listening to a Climate Change Carbon Tax proposal. This was a major disagreement w/ CM Clark and Mayor last year because it would've applied to commercial and industrial buildings. This year it's a sales tax on YOU & all is hunky dory w/ Mayor & Clark.
โWhy donโt homeless people go to shelters?โ
Yesterday City Council toured the largest Denver facilities & found out. We are literally warehousing people & calling it humane.
โEveryone who comes here is sickโ one provider told us.
#copolitics
#DoBetterDenver
#HousingForAll