DENVER — Over the weekend, Denver7 asked people at Denver's Juneteenth Music Festival to open up about issues they are facing. They shared hopeful opinions about progress in recent years but many struck a cautious tone particularly around the pain of ever-rising costs in the Denver metro area.
Click the videos below to watch short Your Opinion videos from Denver7 360 reporting.
'That we have equity:' Sharing your opinion at Denver's Juneteenth Music Festival
Sylvia Lambe is originally from London but has lived in Denver for he past 5 years. At Denver’s Juneteenth Music Festival on Saturday, she expressed hope but wanted to share concern that leadership remain vigilant about addressing the issues faced by marginalized communities.
“So I'm hoping that they're really going to be dedicated and committed to making sure that this everybody the people that may have not had a particularly great start in life, that we have equity and everybody can have a really nice tasty, delicious piece of the community and economic pie.”
‘See each other in the same space:’ Denver Juneteenth voice shares optimism, concern over city’s expensive cost of living
Asked to share his thoughts during Denver’s Juneteenth Music Festival, Sedrick, a native of Colorado, voiced hope for the opportunities to gather and celebrate culture. But the reality of Denver’s rising cost of living is never far from the conversation.
“The changes that I've seen, it's changed drastically. It's like I might not live here much longer. It's kind of hard to live here. It's very expensive. And most of these people are going to go back to a neighborhood far away from here.”
‘Surrounded by positive energy’ at Denver’s Juneteenth Music Festival | Your Opinion
Jasmine says in today’s environment it’s important to have conversations and focus on positive energy.
“And it's important to have an understanding of other people. To understood trauma, struggles and where they come from. And it's important to create a community and show unity more so now than focusing on the negative out there today,”
Jasmine shared her opinion at Denver’s Juneteenth Music Festival and you can share your opinion with Denver7 360 by emailing 360@thedenverchannel.com
People's attitudes are changing:’ lifelong Denverite wants to see more Black-owned businesses embraced
Nichole grew up in Denver and graduated high school here. She stepped up to the Denver7’s Your Opinion microphone during the Juneteenth Music Festival to share why she thinks gentrification continues to be a problem and why she's optimistic about seeing more black-owned businesses in the community.
Why I’m trying to get people of color to stop using the N-word | Your Opinion
At Denver’s Juneteenth Music Festival, Eric Morris shares his opinion on why he’s trying to get people of color to stop using the N-word. “You can't have it both ways. You can't be respected when you've shown that you disrespect yourself.” A Denver resident, Eric also talks about special T-shirts he makes to get people thinking about the issues.