Denver, Boulder celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day

DENVER – For the first time ever, the city is officially celebrating the second Monday in October as “Indigenous Peoples’ Day.”

The Denver City Council approved an ordinance at its Oct. 3 meeting making the day official. Last year, Denver issued a proclamation for Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

“Far too often the contributions of indigenous peoples’ go unrecognized in our history and textbooks, misrepresenting how much of the United States was settled, including Denver,” Councilman Paul Lopez, who introduced the ordnance, said in a news release at the time.

Boulder leaders passed a similar measure in early August to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day alongside Columbus Day.

Mayor Suzanne Jones told those at the meeting at the time she was “sorry it took so long.”

More than a dozen cities across the country have made the second Monday in October Indigenous Peoples’ Day to honor Native Americans either alongside or in opposition to Columbus Day.