Today around 1,000* people converged on the steps of the Capitol to rally against the celebration of Columbus Day before confronting the parade in protest and acts of civil disobedience. The day began with the Four Directions March, organized by Transform Columbus Day, that left from various points in Denver and met in the intersection of Lincoln and Colfax downtown. The four directions were symbolized by the colors red, yellow, white and black representing courage, strength, wisdom and the spirit of generosity to be celebrated by all the different peoples of the world. Afterwards participants moved to the Capitol where a rally was led by the American Indian Movement (AIM). Hosted by Glenn Morris, a member of the leadership council of AIM, attorney and Associate Professor of Political Science at CU Denver, the rally gave voice to many speakers including Kenny Frost of the 7th Ute Nation, Charles Bear Robe, Olga Gonzales, Russell Means and others. (Above is a majority of Russell Means’ speech)

The message today was clear: stop celebrating a day in the name of a man who introduced genocide and slavery to the New World. Organizers called for the city of Denver to remove the name of Christopher Columbus from the national holiday that began right here 100 years ago. Speakers called on history to be portrayed accurately so that the deadly legacy of Columbus may be acknowledged and for state officials to put an end to what they described as a racist holiday celebrating genocide against Native Americans. Supporters held signs saying such things as “Christopher Columbus: Terrorist or Illegal Alien?,” “Thank Columbus for bringing Genocide and Slavery to the New World,” and “This Parade is Hate Speech.”

After the rally everyone marched down the 16th Street Mall and stopped on the corner of 15th and Stout to take a stand in the street along the parade route. Protesters were greeted by a plethora of police on bicycles, motorcycles, on foot and also riot police. The Denver Police Helicopter followed the march from the Capitol steps (where it noisily hovered overhead of the rally) and circled. Police had video cameras and recorded the crowd as they began to assemble a line blocking the street. Police taped off the entire block as protesters played drums, sang and chanted slogans while more police began to move in. Men, women, and children representing all walks of life stood in solidarity shoulder-to-shoulder as tensions began to mount between police and protesters. Glenn Morris poured a bucket of fake blood and baby dolls across the street to symbolize the genocide Columbus brought to Indigenous Peoples in America.

As the police began to draw their lines some people in the crowd grew restless and began to call out to the police, confronting them on the fact that some either did not have any name tags on their uniform or had their names blacked out. At one point a police officer confronted a protester and as the two conversed, the officer grabbed the protester by the arm only to be surrounded by a large crowd yelling “let him go!” Riot police raced to the scene and the police eventually freed the man. Meanwhile on the parade route, demonstrators took their positions in the middle of the street, forming human chains to block the parade. Police then formed a barrier around them and called out over a megaphone that anyone who doesn’t move to the sidewalk would be arrested. Their threats were met with deafening cheers of protest. The crowd began to separate as those wishing not to be arrested piled onto the sidewalks as police forcefully pushed them back while creating yet another physical barrier. Various journalists and photographers danced between the cops, taking pictures of those remaining at the risk of being man-handled. One photographer who had a white headscarf on was violently grabbed by the back of the head as he took a picture of the police confronting someone sitting down. He immediately turned around to walk away when another officer yanked him by his headscarf while another pushed him hard by the back of his head, pulling the scarf off just before he was pushed again by yet another police officer. Other officers were seen throwing people around by their arms, pushing people upside their heads and shoving the on-lookers towards the sidewalk. The crowd immediately began to yell at the police, calling for them to stop being physical due to the peaceful nature of the protest. The organizations Cop Watch and the National Lawyers Guild were present throughout the entire day serving as legal observers monitoring the police.

Meanwhile, police began to barge onto the human chain ripping protesters apart from one another and dragging them off while in stress positions. Supporters chanted from the sidewalks while booing the police. Some of the protesters screamed in pain while they were being yanked or drug away by their arms extended behind their shoulders and legs dragging on the ground. The crowd grew more restless as the rest of the chain was removed. Two men carrying a banner stepped out onto the street and were immediately overtaken by cops, as their arms were twisted and they were escorted to one of the two buses the police department used to hold the prisoners. Over the course of the day more than 80 people were arrested.

The crowd remained at the intersection for a little while longer before marching down both sides of the street, past the police tape, to the corner of 15th and Welton. There they met the parade head-on. Denver Police rushed down the streets in a frenzy to block off the street that separated the two, as SUV’s ornamented with riot police hanging off the sides pulled up. The protesters chanted and held signs in front of the parade while police anxiously patrolled the street. It was at this time that Glenn Morris and later Russell Means stepped out to face the parade in an act of defiance, leading to both of their arrests and energizing the crowds even further. After a long delay the parade finally began and was greeted on both sides by demonstrators calling for the end of Columbus Day. Many Italian-Americans who observe Columbus Day as a celebration of their heritage participated in the parade that consisted mainly of semi-trucks, motorcycles and hot rods. Participants of both the parade and the protest exchanged words the entire time and the atmosphere on the streets was anything but celebratory.

Feisty Aphrodite spoke with many of the protesters and they all supported celebrating Italian heritage, just not under the name of a man they condemned as a racist colonizer. “If they would only change the name of the holiday to refer to Italian heritage rather than Columbus then none of this would happen,” one woman said. Her sentiment seemed to be universal. Organizers are calling on people to contact Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper and Governor Bill Ritter to tell them to change the name of Columbus Day out of respect for Native and African-Americans. We have posted their phone numbers below. Perhaps once they listen to the people, then Italian-Americans can celebrate their heritage in pride rather than defensiveness. To see additional photos, click here. Feisty Aphrodite also produced an independent podcast called FierceCast sharing uncensored commentary about today’s protest, which you listen to here.

Denver Mayor’s Office: 720-865-9090

Colorado Governor’s Office: 303-866-2471

*After this report was written, the official estimates for participants ranged from 500-1,000 people, depending on what organization or group counted.