Council weighs "labor acknowledgment" for enslaved people

Council weighs "labor acknowledgment" for enslaved people

Denver City Council would start meetings with a statement recognizing the forced labor of enslaved Africans and their descendants under a new proposal.

Why it matters: The proposed "labor acknowledgment" is forcing Denver's elected officials into a public debate over how governments should reckon with one of the country's original sins and whether statements are enough.

State of play: Councilmember Shontel Lewis, who is Black, initially introduced the idea last fall.

  • Since then, she's gathered feedback from the Denver African American Commission, Justice for Black Coloradans, and other local groups about possible language.

    • Between the lines: The proposal mirrors a land acknowledgment adopted in 2020 recognizing the Indigenous people who first inhabited Denver while pledging to fix inequities.

    Yes, but: Critics argue acknowledgments can be performative. The New York Times recently published a guest essay by a member of a North Dakota tribal nation criticizing the practice.

  • Councilmember Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez added any acknowledgment can't just be "words on paper."
  • Lewis said the statement is meant to encourage changes to improve the lives of people affected by those past practices by "turning pain into policy."

    • Between the lines: The draft statement condemns slavery, transatlantic trafficking and racial segregation, saying these practices continue to shape social, legal and economic inequities.

  • Other council members suggested including a broader range of affected groups, including Native Americans and Chinese immigrants.

    • Flashback: Slavery existed in what is now Colorado before statehood, news reports show, even though soldiers from the preceding Colorado Territory fought alongside free states during the Civil War.

  • Enslaved Native Americans were widespread in present-day southern Colorado before and after the Emancipation Proclamation, while some African Americans held in bondage were brought here in the early 1800s.

    • What's next: Council delayed a vote until Aug. 11 to consider revising or expanding the statement.