JUSTICE & HUMAN RIGHTS
Standing Up for What’s Right, No Matter Who It Offends
I’ve spent my life fighting powerful interests who think they’re above the law. As Governor, I’ll bring that same energy to protecting every Coloradan’s constitutional rights and human dignity.
ICE ACCOUNTABILITY: UPHOLDING THE CONSTITUTION
I will sign a bill holding ICE agents accountable for any constitutional or human rights violations in Colorado. The Constitution doesn’t have an asterisk – it applies to everyone on Colorado soil. Federal agents who violate people’s rights in our state will face consequences.
This isn’t about politics – it’s about the rule of law that I’ve defended in federal courts for years.
SUPPORTING PALESTINIAN FAMILIES: HUMAN RIGHTS LEADERSHIP
I support Colorado families who want to sponsor Palestinian families fleeing the ongoing genocide in Gaza. I believe in human rights and civil rights for all, and as Governor, I will condemn the atrocities happening in Gaza.
Human suffering knows no borders. Colorado has always been a place of refuge for those seeking safety and opportunity. That tradition continues under my administration.
EPSTEIN INVESTIGATION: NO PROTECTION FOR THE POWERFUL
Recent revelations from the Epstein files and Denver Post reports suggest possible criminal ties here in Colorado. I will sign an executive order directing the Colorado Attorney General to investigate any leads of criminal activity involving Epstein and his associates.
If statutes of limitations have expired, I will call a special legislative session to address the issue and ensure any victim can pursue criminal or civil charges with the full support of the State of Colorado.
Colorado will not protect the rich and powerful. Pedophiles and sex traffickers will be brought to justice. Period. End of story.
NO PRIVATE PRISONS: ENDING MODERN DAY SLAVERY
Prison Labor is Human Trafficking – Period.
As a person of color, it disturbs me to see human rights violated in modern times when we should know better. I believe private prisons represent modern day slavery, and recent court rulings prove my point.
Recently, a Denver District Court Judge Sarah Wallace ruled that the Colorado Department of Corrections and Governor Jared Polis violated the state constitution by forcing prisoners to work. Colorado voters in 2018 approved Amendment A, which bans slavery and involuntary servitude in all cases, including as punishment for a crime – yet the Polis administration continued these unconstitutional practices.
I am saddened that a member of my own party, Governor Polis’s administration, participated in the recent rejection by the courts to force this horrific, unjust, and unconstitutional mandate. The judge found that CDOC used “unconstitutional coercive policies,” including “isolation in a cell for more than twenty-two hours a day for more than two days (three if over a weekend) for failure to work.” (Source – Denver7)
This is torture. This is slavery. This ends with my administration.
IMMEDIATE PRISON REFORM
I will sign an executive order on Day One banning all private prisons in Colorado. Incarceration should never be a profit-making enterprise. When companies make money from keeping people locked up, the incentive is to keep more people imprisoned longer – not to rehabilitate and reintegrate them into society.
ENDING FORCED LABOR
As one advocate noted: “If Colorado voters remove the slavery exception, and it still required litigation to enforce it, what does that really say about how deeply embedded these problems in our system really are?” (Source – Denver7)
I will ensure that all prison work programs are truly voluntary, with fair wages and genuine job training that leads to employment after release. No Coloradan should be threatened with solitary confinement for refusing to work for pennies per hour.
REHABILITATION, NOT EXPLOITATION
Prison should be about rehabilitation and preparing people to successfully reenter society – not about extracting cheap labor from vulnerable populations. We will create real job training programs, education opportunities, and mental health services that actually reduce recidivism.
The 13th Amendment’s exception for slavery “as punishment for crime” was a loophole that became the engine for convict leasing, chain gangs, and forced labor. Colorado voters said “no more” in 2018. It’s time our government listened.
