Obama, defeat of anti-affirmative action ballot mark MLK Day
Some in Colorado remembered the sacrifices of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. a bit early, on Election Day, rather than the national holiday to commemorate his life.
The election of the nation's first African American president overshadowed another step forward in the struggle for equality — the defeat of Amendment 46 which would have rolled back decades of civil rights law.
New evidence suggests LDS church may have broken law in Prop 8 push
Activists claim that money from the Mormon Church was the deciding factor in passing Proposition 8 in California — banning gay marriage. The church claims to have only spent a few thousand dollars on the campaign, but ANP has uncovered evidence that may expose a gaping hole in that claim. Also, the IRS forbids religious organizations from "substantially" lobbying for political legislation. Did the Mormon Church violate this law?
Aurora moves forward on same-sex benefits question for city employees
After delaying the question a month ago, the Aurora City Council moved one step closer to offering insurance benefits to same-sex partners of city employees Monday night, the Aurora Sentinel reports. At an informal City Council session, council members voted 6-5 to consider the proposal at a formal meeting and decided to hold off discussion of the contentious issue until then. Some city decision-makers have questioned the constitutionality of the proposal or argued it was too expensive when the city faces drastic budget cuts, but advocates argue it's essential to attract the best workers to the city.
House throws down gauntlet on wage discrimination
Score a victory for women and others who have long-suffered lower wages with only narrow legal remedies to fight for back pay.
Newly emboldened by Barack Obama's decisive electoral victory, the U.S. House passed two wage discrimination bills by wide margins Friday sneaking in an end-run around an expected veto by outgoing President George W. Bush. Obama has signaled his enthusiastic support for the bills.
When Colorado was Klan country
This week’s legislative kick-off, with African-American men leading both the Colorado Senate and House of Representatives, is historic indeed, and many have highlighted the import of the moment. After all, it was less than a century ago that the Ku Klux Klan dominated much of Colorado politics, even claiming then-Gov. Clarence Morley a member. But it would be wrong, as has been suggested in some news reports, to claim that the only targets of the Klan of the early-to-mid 1920s in Colorado were people of color. Rather, as historians have detailed, the primary motivation of the Klan in Colorado was to promote “100 percent Americanism” — and that meant also targeting Jews and Roman Catholic immigrants.
State AGs may band together over ‘conscience clause,’ but not Colorado
Expanding on Mike Lillis' story today on Capitol Hill Democrats' attempts to repeal the 11th hour Bush Administration "conscience clause" rule that threatens women's reproductive health care, 13 states are planning a federal court challenge should political remedies fail.
Accused killer of transgendered woman faces additional charges
A man accused of bludgeoning to death an 18-year-old transgendered Fort Lupton woman will face additional criminal charges that could increase his sentence even if he's not convicted of the most serious murder charges, the Greeley Tribune reported Wednesday. The Weld County district attorney filed habitual criminal charges this week against Allen Andrade, 32, who stands accused of killing Angie Zapata in July. Police say Andrade beat Zapata to death with his fists and a fire extinguisher after he learned the transgendered teenager was biologically a man.
Top 10 international stories that never made the front page in 2008
It’s time for the annual parade of top stories of the year to come marching through. Just in Colorado we had a doozy of a year, with an historic national election roosting right in our backyard, not to mention a huge ballot and further Democratic gains in what was just a few short years ago a decidedly red state. But what of the rest of the world?
Will Bush pardon Cheney & Co. on Christmas Eve?
Noting that George Bush Sr. pardoned the Iran-Contra clan on Christmas eve of 1992, Democrats.com is warning that his son could do something very similar Wednesday: pardon Dick Cheney and the rest of the administration officials who authorized and encouraged the torture and humiliation of “war on terror” detainees.
Renfroe bill to require police notification over abuse at youth facilities
State Sen. Scott Renfroe reportedly plans to sponsor a bill that would require youth detention facilities to notify local police when allegations of abuse or assault are reported. The Greeley Republican was quoted in the Greeley Tribune and by Fox News as citing two recent cases of abuse in a Weld County facility. But allegations of abuse have been far from limited to just that facility in recent years.