July 23, 2014
DENVER – Today, U.S. District Judge Raymond P. Moore declared Colorado’s marriage ban unconstitutional -- the latest of dozens of state and federal rulings striking down similar bans across the country. State Attorney General John Suthers has continued to defend Colorado's ban, despite acknowledging that it is likely to be overturned in the end. Suthers has already wasted taxpayer dollars on the appeal of the state-level ruling, and he has indicated that he intends to waste further state resources on an appeal of today's federal decision. Were he to drop his needless appeals in these cases, marriage equality would come to the Centennial State.
In response to these developments, Wendy Howell, State Director of Why Marriage Matters Colorado – the broad coalition working to secure the freedom to marry for all committed couples in the state – released the following statement:
"Today, Judge Moore affirmed what Adams County District Court Judge C. Scott Crabtree, the justices of the 10th Circuit Court, and dozens of other judges nationwide have decided: marriage bans are unconstitutional. We applaud his ruling as another step forward for equality, and we continue to call upon Attorney General John Suthers to drop his wasteful defense of Colorado’s unconstitutional ban.
"Republican governors in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Nevada have all decided to stop wasting taxpayer dollars continuing to defend indefensible bans in their states. Here in Colorado, real couples are hurt every day that they are denied the ability to marry, and there is no justifiable reason to prolong that pain. Therefore, we again call upon Suthers to drop his appeals and let the rulings stand.
"Many organizations, leaders, and taxpayers in Colorado have called upon the Attorney General to drop his unnecessary appeals and let the freedom to marry come to Colorado. Most recently, more than 5,000 Coloradans signed a petition calling on Suthers to drop his appeal in the state court case -- those petition signatures were delivered last Thursday to his Denver office by a delegation of impacted couples, members of the state legislature, faith leaders, and other community leaders."

In his January 1964 article published in the New York Amsterdam News, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote that the “civil rights legislation now before Congress” was “born in the streets of Birmingham amid snarling dogs and the battering of fire hoses. It was fashioned in the jail cells of the South and by the marching feet in the North. It became the order of the day at the great March On Washington last summer” (King). In this characteristically poetic way, Dr. King traced the long, arduous, and tragically costly path that eventually led to the signing of the Civil Rights Act on July 2^nd, 1964.
Fifty years later, it is our obligation to remember the great perseverance, sacrifice, and unbreakable faith of the many individuals whose united efforts culminated in the passage of this landmark legislation. It is also our responsibility to examine the progress made toward equal opportunity in the last half-decade and, most importantly, to reaffirm our commitment to continued endeavors for social justice.
Last Wednesday, the Department of the Interior (DOI) did just that at its 2014 Multi-Cultural Day at the Denver Federal Center. The event was centered on the 50^th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act and featured speakers, artists, and nonprofits who promote social justice and civil rights. The ACLU of Colorado was invited to participate in the Exhibit Booth Show, which was an excellent opportunity to share the work we do in defense of Coloradoans’ civil rights with Federal Center employees. The vast majority of employees we spoke to were familiar with the ACLU, and many thanked us for our work. It was humbling and inspiring to receive the gratitude of people who regulate our national parks, lead energy commissions, and work for the Department of Education.

ACLU booth materials

List of organizations at the Exhibit Booth Show

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
During a lull in booth activity, I attended a portion of the panel discussion on the Civil Rights Act and its impact. The panel consisted of professors and Department of Education employees who are involved in the study and remedy of contemporary civil rights issues. The moderator’s first question to the four panelists was: “In your opinion, what are the three most pressing civil rights issues of today?”  There were several issues that multiple panelists agreed were the most critical; these included voting rights, mass incarceration and prisoners’ rights, the school-to-prison pipeline, inequities in education, and immigration reform. Unsurprisingly, these issues align with the ACLU’s current priorities. As Judith Browne Dianis elucidates in her article “Under Fire” in the Winter 2014 edition of Stand magazine, the ACLU has been at the forefront of many of the most significant civil rights victories since 1964 (Browne Dianis, 28-33). Fifty years since the passage of the Civil Rights Act, the ACLU remains fervently dedicated to the protection and extension of individuals’ civil rights, and is committed to ameliorating the most pressing civil rights issues of today.
I left the DOI Multi-Cultural Day with a profound gratitude for the people (both past and present) who have tirelessly worked to empower, emancipate, and lift the lives of others. It is a great honor to work beside such dedicated guardians of others’ civil rights. And it is a true privilege to live in a country that passed the Civil Rights Act 50 years ago. As one panelist pointed out, progress toward social justice is never inevitable and rarely linear. But it is possible with the dedication, faith, and compassion of people like those who helped get the civil rights legislation into and through Congress. As we look toward the future, let us remember that we too are capable of producing such progress and that it is our responsibility to lift, rather than restrict, the lives of others.

Certificate given to the ACLU from the DOI

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sources

Browne Dianis, Judith. "Under Fire." Stand Winter 2014: 28-33. Print.
King, Dr. Martin Luther, Jr. "A Look to 1964." New York Amsterdam News [New York] 1 Jan. 1964: The King Center. Web. 17 July 2014. <http://www.thekingcenter.org/archive/document/look-1964>.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (former Daily Show correspondent) featured a segment about the U.S. prison system on his show, and it's must-see TV. Mass incarceration, solitary confinement, prison conditions, prison privatization - all are touched upon. Check it out:

More information on the ACLU of Colorado's work on solitary confinement can be found on our Stop Solitary campaign page.

For information on what the ACLU of Colorado is doing to stop mass incarceration, visit our Criminal Justice issue page.