πŸ¦„ Land & Housing, Racism & Far-Right

Denver Refuses to Negotiate, Sweeps Indigenous Encampment

Denver, CO – Under the hardline stance of Mayor Michael Hancock, Denver continues to sweep unhoused encampmentsβ€”more than 80 this year aloneβ€”ignoring countless requests from unhoused residents and their advocates to stop, and refusing to negotiate any alternatives. Outside the Four Winds American Indian Council…

πŸ¦„ Community, COVID-19

Denver Sweeps 300+ Tent Encampment Residents

Denver, CO – The largest tent encampment in the city, which sprung up in October 2019, is being cleared early Monday morning as about 60 advocates protest the move.

Unicorn Riot is on-the-ground covering the sweep, with live coverage starting at 5AM.

Residents at the…

πŸ¦„ Protest & Direct Action

Unhoused Residents Find Refuge at Downtown Vigil

Denver, CO – A four-day Race and Homelessness Vigil began early Wednesday morning opposite the Denver City and County Building. It began primarily as a space to educate the local community on how Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) are disproportionately affected by houselessness,…

πŸ¦„ Racism & Far-Right

Bringing Poor People Back to the Forefront on MLK Day

Denver, CO – On January 20, 1986, the first nationwide celebrations took place in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Junior, nearly 20 years after his assassination at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. This year on the 35th annual celebration of Dr. King, the…

πŸ¦„ Social Control

Denver’s ‘Right to Survive’ Ballot Initiative Voted Down

Denver, CO – The contentious ballot initiative 300, or Right to Survive, was voted down in Tuesday’s municipal elections with 81% of votes being against the ballot question. The initiative would have effectively repealed the Unauthorized Camping Ordinance (camping ban) passed in 2012, which criminalizes…

πŸ¦„ Investigative

Denver Paid Clean-Up Company $400,000 to Help in Houseless Sweeps

Denver, CO – For at least two years, the city of Denver has been contracting Custom Environmental Services, Inc. (CES) to assist in clearing out camps of people without housing. Unicorn Riot filed Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) requests and received about 50 invoices sent…

πŸ¦„ Social Control

New Initiative Pursues Human Rights for All in Denver

Denver, CO – Over the past six months, with the direction of Denver Homeless Out Loud (DHOL), community members gathered nearly 10,000 petition signatures to get the Denver Right to Survive Initiative on the city’s May 2019 municipal ballot.
The ballot initiative asks:
“Shall the…

πŸ¦„ Police, Social Control

Denver Police, City Workers Throw Away Belongings Amid Lawsuit

Denver, CO – On July 9 and 12, 2018, Denver Homeless Out Loud (DHOL), an advocacy group for people without housing, published two videos documenting Denver police and city workers seizing people’s belongings and throwing them away; also known as “sweeps.”
These ongoing sweeps continue…

πŸ¦„ Community

Denver Sweeps Unhoused Residents Amid Class Action Lawsuit

Denver, CO – On Friday, May 19, 2017, people living without housing in downtown Denver were approached by police and given the equivalent of eviction notices. These interactions with the Denver police are not new or surprising for unhoused residents, but these most recent interactions…

πŸ¦„ Community

Three Co-Defendants Fight Denver’s Camping Ban in Court

UPDATE – 4/5/17: Wednesday afternoon, the jury announced that they had found all three co-defendants guilty of violating the Unauthorized Camping Ordinance. Denverite reports:
Jerry Burton, Randy Russell and Terese Howard were each charged with violating Denver’s ban on urban camping and interference with a…

πŸ¦„ Community

Third Push for Homeless Bill of Rights in Colorado Legislature

Denver, CO – For the third year in a row, the Homeless Bill of Rights, also known as the Right To Rest Act, is going to be reintroduced to Colorado’s legislature, the General Assembly. Denver Homeless Out Loud (DHOL) is the bill’s organizational sponsor and…

πŸ¦„ Community

First Hearing in Class-Action Against Denver for Violating Human Rights

Denver, CO – On Wednesday, October 12th, 2016, Judge Craig B. Shaffer’s court room was packed during the first hearing in the class-action lawsuit against the city and county of Denver for violating the human rights of people without housing.
Attorney Jason Flores-Williams filed the…

πŸ¦„ Community

Denver’s Affordable Housing Displaces Low-Income Residents

Denver, CO – When traveling through downtown Denver, it is impossible to go a few blocks without seeing construction projects for new apartment buildings. Some may see these new developments as necessary improvements for an up-and-coming booming hipster city, however the ones who are being…

πŸ¦„ Arts & Culture, Community

Ninth Annual Art Sled Rally in South Minneapolis

Minneapolis, MN – Today, an unusually warm and rainy Saturday in late January, South Minneapolis’s own Powderhorn Park hosted hundreds of community members who both participated in and watched the 9th Annual Art Sled Rally.
Hilarity ensued.

Ninth Annual Art Sled Rally in South Minneapolis…