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Sen. Michael Bennet in primary race
Sen. Micheal Bennet
The primary election is currently underway in Colorado, with ballots either received or on their way to voters and a return deadline of Election Day, August 10. While most counties in Colorado are holding the election by mail-in ballot only, a few areas may be opening polls on Election Day. If you are unsure about how the election is being carried out in your area, contact your local elections office.
There are five openly gay or lesbian Democratic candidates in this primary who are running for the Colorado state legislature - Sen. Pat Steadman, unopposed; Rep. Mark Ferrandino, unopposed; Rep. Sue Schafer, unopposed; Sen. Lucia Guzman, opposed by Joel Judd; and Dr. Mark Thrun, opposed by Crisanta Duran. Another openly gay candidate, U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, is running unopposed in the primary in his district.
And while there are many LGBT-friendly candidates running for various offices, one of the most heated competitions is for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Michael Bennet. Bennet and his opponent, former Colorado Speaker of the House Andrew Romanoff, both have a history of LGBT-friendly positions and policies, and both have a solid LGBT following.
We asked both candidates the same questions. In our July 14 issue, we presented Andrew Romanoff's responses. Here, we present Sen. Michael Bennett's responses.
What do you see as the three most important national issues for the LGBT community now and what is your position on each?
First, we urgently need to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." It's a failed and discriminatory policy that has led to the discharge of more than 13,000 patriotic Americans. We're losing some of our most talented service members at a time when our military is already stretched thin in Iraq, Afghanistan and across the globe. That's why I've cosponsored legislation to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," and that's why the Senate needs to stop delaying and get this done.
There are a number of other important priorities I am working on in order to safeguard the equal rights of the LGBT community. I'm a cosponsor of an inclusive Employee Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which would ban discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in the workplace. There have been a number of well-documented instances of workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation in the 29 states where individuals lack legal protections. That's unacceptable, and that's why we need to pass this. And I also think Congress should repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, because states should determine their own approach to marriage law, and the federal government shouldn't mandate discriminatory policies against anyone.
What problems/barriers do you see to successful outcomes on these issues?
Frankly, this is once again a story of a United States Senate that is dysfunctional, not working for the American people and bottling up needed change. At this point, the failure of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is widely recognized, and our proposal to end it has attracted bipartisan support. Legislation that would put the policy on the road to ending has passed the U.S. House, but we're waiting on the Senate to take action. It's a similar story with the Employee Non-Discrimination Act, which passed the U.S. House in 2007 with 35 Republican votes, but which the Senate never passed. That's part of why I'm pushing a plan to reform the Senate - so we can have a Congress that actually responds to these needs.
Many in the LGBT community are frustrated with Congress and the president for what they consider to be little to no movement on LGBT issues. Are these frustrations legitimate and how would you respond to people who are expressing them?
Of course these frustrations are legitimate. On "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," on ENDA, on a range of other issues, change has been far too long in coming. This is just one of many, many urgent priorities that has stalled in a dysfunctional U.S. Senate, and I'm more frustrated than anyone by our collective failure to meet these challenges.
However, we are making progress. Earlier this year, we extended hospital visitation and medical-power-of-attorney rights to same-sex partners. The move means that at the vast majority of hospitals in our country, same-sex partners can no longer be prevented from visiting their loved ones. There is more work to be done, but I am confident we are moving in the right direction.
What should LGBT voters be aware of with regard to your history of support for LGBT issues?
I have always believed that all Americans deserve equal rights and protections, and that viewpoint means that where I stand on LGBT issues is pretty clear-cut. I have been a consistent voice on this issue; for instance, while I served as superintendent of DPS [Denver Public Schools], the district passed a resolution extending important benefits to same-sex couples and their families, which I strongly supported. And that's why the LGBT community can count on me to fight discrimination and injustice as a member of the U.S. Senate.
Why should LGBT voters vote for you?
Let me make two points. First, I hope LGBT voters support me for the reasons I've already highlighted: my consistent advocacy in support of equal rights throughout my career, including as DPS superintendent, my support for ENDA, my support for repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and DOMA and a range of other areas where I have demonstrated my commitment to equal rights.
Second, in my experience, voters in this community, as in most communities, also care a great deal about the severe overall challenges we face as a nation. They're worried about a Washington that isn't working for us, unemployment and a jobless recovery, a broken financial system, a failing education system and a ballooning deficit. And that's why I hope voters across Colorado, of all sexual orientations, vote for me - because, rather than worrying about the politics of 2010, I'm focused on solutions. I'm fighting for bold reforms in our schools, reforms that will clean up Wall Street, lending for small businesses and assistance for struggling families to get our economy back on track, a bold package of reforms to make Washington work again and bipartisan approaches to rein in out of control spending and pay down our debt.
More information on Michael Bennet is available at www.bennet.senate.gov.
One Colorado holds Townhall Meetings
One Colorado Executive Director, Brad Clark.
The One Colorado Education Fund held a series of Townhall Meetings across the state in July, with meetings in Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, Denver, Durango and Grand Junction (scheduled for July 29). The purpose of the meetings was for Colorado's LGBT citizens and allies to meet new One Colorado Executive Director Brad Clark, to present the findings of the One Colorado Education Fund survey of LGBT Coloradans and of a commissioned poll of Coloradans at large, and to have a dialogue with community members about their concerns.
More than 100 people attended the Denver meeting, held on July 21 at the Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church. Discussion included same-sex marriage rights, school bullying, misunderstandings and division within the LGBT community, and the need to effectively educate those outside of the community on LGBT issues.
Clark said that research indicates that having a close relationship with an LGBT person is the most important factor for non-LGBT people in acceptance of the community and of LGBT rights, such as domestic partnerships. But while only 22 percent of Coloradans at large strongly oppose same-sex couples having that same legal rights as heterosexual couples, Clark said, "These people really, really believe that. The intensity is high. The intensity on our side is lukewarm."
High-intensity feelings are what bring voters to the polls, while others more favorable to LGBT causes might not be so moved, Clark said, so it is important for the community to build a connection with voters, and the way to do that is to for people to tell their story. Those in attendance were given the opportunity to sign up to tell their story to the media or other venues in conjunction with One Colorado.
It is One Colorado Education Fund's intent to use the survey results and meeting feedback to develop an overall plan of action for the organization. Additional information is available at www.one-colorado.org.
Gravity Defied Theatre wins four awards
Gravity Defied Theatre, a musical theatre group through the Rocky Mountain Arts Association with a mission to open the minds, eyes and hearts of the community through an eclectic mix of shows and collaboration with a nonprofit each season, recently received four awards at the Colorado Community Theatre Consortium's Theatre Festival 2010. Gravity Defied Theatre competed in Boulder against nine other theatre companies from around the state, presenting a 55-minute version of their upcoming performance The Wild Party, directed and choreographed by Danny Harrigan.
Awards won were: Second Place Best Production for The Wild Party, and, in the All-State Theatre Company category, Best Choreography, Danny Harrigan; Best Actor, Cameron Turner; and Best Actress, Mariah LeeAnne Salazar. In addition, the Gravity Defied Theatre band and voicing, under music director Nicholas Roseth, received special praise from the judges.
Gravity Defied Theatre, along with Evergreen Players, who won First Place Best Production, now moves to the regional competition with the American Association of Community Theatre.
Additional information is available at www.rmarts.org.
Help OFC remember your loved ones lost to AIDS
Help Out Front Colorado remember your loved ones lost to AIDS on our Memorial Page in the August 11 AIDS Walk Colorado issue. Please send names of your loved ones to matt@outfrontcolorado.com by August 2 with the subject line "Memorial."
AIDS Walk Colorado, the Rocky Mountain Region's largest and most successful HIV and AIDS fundraiser, takes place on Saturday, August 14 at Cheesman Park.The event serves as a day to remember those we have lost to the disease, with prominent speakers, panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, the Celebration of Life Festival, live music, food, beverages and the 2nd annual AIDS Walk Colorado Volleyball Tournament, held in conjunction with the Colorado Gay Volleyball Association.
Additional information is available at www.aidswalkcolorado.org.
Denver uses Ballot TRACE program for primary election
The August 10 primary election is an all-mail election in Denver, so ballots are automatically sent to all eligible voters who are affiliated with the Democratic, Republican or Libertarian parties.
The primary election also marks the debut of Ballot TRACE, Denver's first-in-the-nation ballot tracking, reporting, and communication engine. Ballot TRACE allows voters to receive messages about the status of their ballot before it enters the mail system, while it is being processed by the post office and after it has been returned to the Elections Division. Voters can choose to automatically receive e-mail or text messages, or they can retrieve those messages on the Denver Elections Division's Web site.
Party-affiliated Denver voters can sign up for this free service at www.denvergov.org/ballottrace. Those who don't own a computer but would like to receive text messages can call 311 and request to be signed up. Unaffiliated voters will not receive a mail ballot for the primary election, and therefore will not be able to use Ballot TRACE in the primary. However, they can sign up for Ballot TRACE beginning in mid-August for the general election in November.
The Denver Elections Division partnered with a local software company, i3logix, and the U.S. Postal Service to create Ballot TRACE, and beta-tested it during the November 2009 election. This groundbreaking system involves new postal bar-coding technology and a new Web-based software and messaging system.
"We want to continue to find ways to offer improved election services to Denver's citizens," says Clerk and Recorder Stephanie O'Malley. "It became clear to us in 2008 that people would like some assurance about the status of their mail ballot, and we felt this technology could offer significant value. It also gives us an inside look at how our ballots work their way through the postal system."
Voted ballots can be returned by mail or in person. The return postage is 61 cents. Voters who choose to drop their ballots off in person can take them to any one of 13 Voter Service Centers across the city. Five of these locations will offer drive-through drop-off service. Information on service centers, drive-through locations, dates and hours of operation can be found on the instruction sheet in the voter's mail ballot packet, by calling 311 or at www.DenverVotes.orgso, i downloaded the. Sample ballots are available on the Elections Division Web site at www.DenverVotes.org.
Voters should make sure to deposit their voted ballots in an attended red ballot box only. Ballots should never be dropped off at any unsecured location or outside of the posted hours of operation.
The Center reopens at new location
The GLBT Community Center of Colorado (The Center) has reopened its doors at its new location at 1301 E. Colfax Ave. in Denver. The completely renovated building opened on July 12, and a grand opening celebration for the community is planned for mid-September.
"We're thrilled that the community owns its own building," says Hope Wisneski, the Center's deputy director. "All of our programs are up and running, with an eye on expansion to meet the community's needs."
The building is still undergoing some finishing touches, but Center staff and community members are already pleased with the new expanded facilities.
"People are enjoying all of the meeting space," says Wisneski.
Grand opening details are currently being finalized, but The Center is up, running, and open for business, so community members are encouraged to come by and start utilizing the new space. More information is available at www.glbtcolorado.org.