DENVER — Regional Transportation District (RTD) officials are working with law enforcement to determine who posted several racist, anti-immigrant signs at several bus stops along one of Denver’s busiest transit corridors overnight.
The first of at least three signs which reference Jim Crow-era laws and a perceived preferential treatment of immigrants coming from the southern border by the Biden administration over U.S. citizens, was found by a bus operator of Route 15 at around 5 a.m. Thursday, according to an RTD spokesperson. The route traverses a nearly 20-mile stretch from Denver’s Union Station to Tower Rd. in Aurora.
The metal sign was attached to the bus stop’s pole with rivets and appeared to have been installed shortly before it was reported, the RTD spokesperson said in a statement.
Two other signs were later found at bus stops near the intersections of Colfax and Garfield St., as well as Colfax and Yosemite St.
RTD officials were not aware of additional signs at other bus stops, but agency staff is working with Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) to check if any other signs have popped up elsewhere.
Both incidents are being investigated by RTD Transit Police and the Denver Police Department. The latter is investigating the signs as a bias-motivated crime, a DPD spokesperson told Denver7 via email.
Jason Alexander, who took the photo of the image at Colfax and Yosemite Thursday morning, told Denver7 he was "pissed" about the message of the sign, but felt he couldn't do anything about it.
"Someone put that up to stir things up," he said.
Asked what he would tell the person who put up those signs, Alexander had only one thing to say.
"Maybe you should just keep that to yourself, man. I guess if you don't like other people, then stay in the house and become a recluse. There's already enough going on out there. We don't necessarily need all of this," he added.
“It’s not an isolated incident, it’s a coordinated effort”
The racist, anti-immigrant signs that seemingly popped out of nowhere appear to be a coordinated effort by people “putting in a great deal of money to be able to spread this kind of hate and bigotry,” Denver City Councilwoman Shontel Lewis told Denver7 earlier Thursday.
So far, she said, she’s heard of similar signs popping up in New York as well as Chicago, where these racist, anti-immigrant messages have appeared at Chicago Transit Authority bus stops.
RTD officials, from their part, said they would be connecting with other transit agencies across the country “to assess the magnitude of the coordinated racist activity.”
“It's not an isolated incident, it's a coordinated effort,” Lewis said, adding that the signs are coming at the same time as inflated new stories about a Venezuelan gang’s presence in Aurora are spreading through social media.
Lewis said news stories about Venezuelans taking over an apartment complex there are “complete, sheer and utter nonsense” calling the conversation surrounding what’s happening in Aurora “fearmongering.”
Denver7 has been following developments in Aurora ever since city officials earlier this month told dozens of residents – many of them immigrants from Venezuela – that the apartment complex they were living in was going to be shut down due to a long list of code violations, which the property management company blamed on the Tren de Aragua gang.
Since then, Denver7 has kept you informed about Aurora’s effort to investigate the gang’s presence in the area, as well as more recent developments from the feds, which announced Wednesday they had partnered with Aurora PD as revelations come to light that “components” of the gang have been operating in both Aurora and Denver, though the crimes appear to be isolated at this time.
Aurora
Venezuelan gang 'components' in Aurora but reports are isolated, city says
Mayor, governor call out “abhorrent,” “horrible” messages
News of the racist, anti-immigrant messages quickly made it to the desks of both Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Gov. Jared Polis.
“This type of abhorrent & racist behavior is absolutely not welcome here,” Mayor Mike Johnston said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, as he vowed to continue fighting for a welcoming city “that gives opportunity to people from all walks of life.”
He added that the people responsible for the messages “will be held accountable, and racist behavior like this will never be tolerated in our city.”
In a social media post on the same platform, Gov. Jared Polis thanked DPD for working quickly to remove the signs, adding Coloradans “reject this hate-fueled rhetoric and we won’t tolerate it – our fight to build a Colorado for All continues.”
There is no room for hate in our state — these horrible and racist images - funded by unknown groups- are meant to stoke fear and hate in our communities. I thank Denver Police for working quickly to end the defacement of public property and thank our Department of Public Safety…
— Governor Jared Polis (@GovofCO) August 29, 2024
“Our intention is to really get to the bottom of this,” Councilwoman Lewis told Denver7, adding she was in conversations with council members from Denver and elsewhere to see what they could to make sure people are held accountable.
Later Thursday, Denver City Council released a statement about the racist, anti-immigrant signage, saying they stand "united against hate in all its forms."
“As a community, we must stand united against hate in all its forms. The recent appearance of racist signs in Denver is deeply troubling and does not reflect the values of our city. Denver is a place of inclusivity, diversity, and respect, and we will not tolerate messages of division or hate. We stand with all residents in condemning these acts and reaffirm our commitment to building a community where everyone feels safe, valued, and heard. Let's continue to uplift one another and stand strong against racism.”
Rep. Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver, the chair of the Colorado Black Democratic Legislative Caucus and the Assistant Majority Leader of the Colorado House of Representatives, said in a statement later Thursday that attempts to divide people of color will not succeed.
“This hate crime used the worst vestiges of Jim Crow as an intentional attempt to divide people of color and the unity we’ve built," Rep. Bacon said. "People died in this country so that signs like these could never again be posted legally. No one in Colorado should ever get on the bus in the morning and have to see something like this."
RTD is asking customers and the public to report any suspicious behavior that they may have observed near the agency’s bus stops during the early morning hours. Anonymous or discreet tips can be shared using RTD’s Transit Watch app, by calling Transit Police dispatch at 303-299-2911, or texting 303-434-9100.
Denver7's Kristian Lopez contributed to this report.
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