Denver, CO
Tens of thousands line streets to celebrate at Denver Pride Parade
DENVER — About 100,000 people lined the streets Sunday morning for the Denver Pride Parade.
It was a chance to celebrate and reflect on how far the region’s LGBTQ+ community has come.
Like many people, Maya Scott-Donegan learned new things during the pandemic and made an important discovery about herself.
“When I found out that I wasn’t straight, it was during the pandemic so there wasn’t like any events for me to go to, so I just wanted to be here to be around other queer people,” said Scott-Donegan.
She and her family drove from Ft. Collins to attend Denver’s pride parade.
“I’m excited to be around other people who are like me and to see how many of them there are,” said Scott-Donegan. “You don’t always realize how many people are part of the community.”
The Denver Pride Parade is a chance for members of the LGBTQ+ community and their allies to celebrate each other.
That celebration was on full display for over two hours Sunday as the parade made its way from Cheesman Park down Colfax Avenue.
Organizers estimate 100,000 people attended the parade.
They say over 500,000 people are attending PrideFest at Civic Center Park this weekend.
Tens of thousands line streets to celebrate at Denver Pride Parade
Denver City Councilwoman Robin Kniech served as one of the parade marshals.
Kniech was the first out LGBTQ+ member of the city council when she was elected in 2011.
Because of term limits, she’s leaving the council next month.
“It’s bittersweet to be saying goodbye,” said Kniech.
As she looks back, Kniech has mixed emotions about the progress made and the challenges that remain.
“We have seen gay marriage become legal during my time in office. I couldn’t marry my partner when I was first elected, and now I have a wife, and we are able to have our relationship recognized,” said Kniech. “We’ve seen our country come to accept gay marriage, but we’ve also seen this incredible backlash where in many cases it’s less safe to be out in our country. We’ve seen transgender individuals see their identities be erased so there is both pain and challenge and violent and attacks at the same time we’ve seen moving forward.”
This is why she and others say events like the pride parade and pride festival are so important.
“Pride is one collective story of joy and celebration,” said Kniech. “And we know that the stories will uplift.”
While Kniech will be leaving the council, two more out members of the LGBTQ+ community, Darrell Watson and Shontel Lewis, will be joining it.
“I’m so excited to welcome them and to pass the mantle off to them as they break new ceilings,” Kniech said.
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Denver, CO
Here’s Why Garett Bolles’ Days as a Bronco Could be Numbered
The Denver Broncos have a few players with expiring contracts after the 2024 season. While the Broncos should be in a better position as far as the salary cap goes, they won’t be able to keep everyone.
In the coming weeks, I’m going to examine some of the Broncos players who are in the final year of their contracts and might be under consideration for a new deal. While not everyone I will discuss will get extended, they’re the team’s top candidates for a multi-year deal.
For each player, I will look at the arguments for and against extending the player, then consider what may matter the most to the Broncos when it comes to an extension.
We’ll continue this series with left tackle Garett Bolles.
Bolles, a 2017 first-round pick, has become the most consistent performer on the Broncos’ offensive line since 2019. Though his first two seasons were rough, mainly because of penalties, he reduced those flags over time and improved as a pass protector, while remaining consistent as a quality run blocker.
Bolles suffered a broken leg in 2022 but came back with a quality season in 2023. While there had been rumors that he might be traded, it never came to pass and Bolles demonstrated he could still play well.
We have seen other cases of offensive tackle who have been able to play for many years, proving they’re deserving of a third contract. One need only look at somebody like Andrew Whitworth, who played at a high level, even getting Pro Bowl selections and All-Pro awards, well into his mid-30s.
While it’s true that somebody like Quinn Meinerz is younger, it’s not difficult to find offensive guards in the draft. But when you have a quality offensive tackle, he can be difficult to replace. It would be better to commit money to Bolles than to Meinerz.
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There is no guarantee that Bolles will continue to play well beyond 2024. While there are examples of offensive tackles who have played for multiple seasons at a high level, others have declined markedly once they hit their mid-30s.
Bolles may be a good offensive tackle but he’s not an elite player. There may be an argument for keeping an elite offensive tackle around but if said tackle is good but not elite, it won’t be as difficult to replace him.
Meinerz may not play a premium position but he is a younger player with more upside. It’s better to pay the younger player with upside than to play the older player who may be good, but whose decline could come at any moment.
Finally, there is no guarantee that the Broncos will be able to keep Bolles at a reasonable cost. The top offensive tackles average at least $20 million per year. Is that the amount the Broncos should pay to a player who will be 33 years old in 2025?
What leads to an extension likely depends on two factors: How many years the Broncos believe Bolles has left in the tank before his play declines and how much money he wants in a new contract.
Bolles could be in line to seek an extension similar to what Dion Dawkins got from the Buffalo Bills, who gave him a three-year, $60.02M deal through 2029. Though Dawkins had three years left on his previous contract, the amount committed may represent what Bolles would get in an extension.
With that said, the Broncos also have to ask themselves about an extension for Bolles compared to other players, particularly Meinerz. It’s possible the Broncos could keep both, of course, but for now, fans should operate under the assumption that one of Meinerz or Bolles could be extended while the other will be allowed to leave after 2024, and later replaced through the draft.
There’s only so much cash and cap space to go around, after all.
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Denver, CO
Pro-Palestine encampment on Denver’s Auraria Campus empties 23 days later
The anti-war encampment on Denver’s Auraria Campus is now empty after pro-Palestine protests first began 23 days ago.
Removal of the encampment by demonstrators started around 8 p.m. on Friday, with most of it gone by Saturday morning, said Auraria spokesperson Devra Ashby. “The encampment was dispersed in a relatively calm manner, except for blocking Speer and Auraria last night,” she added.
The Auraria Campus announced the dispersal of the Tivoli Quad encampment on Saturday near 1 p.m., citing that cleanup starts today. However, access to the campus buildings remains limited to “critical personnel and operations,” with Tivoli Quad and other green spaces also closed for repairs, according to a statement issued by the campus.
“Leaders have worked diligently towards finding a peaceful resolution,” the statement details. “We hope this will end more than three weeks of unauthorized occupation that has increasingly escalated into dangerous activities, taken significant time, resources, and dialogue with student protesters to resolve, and has pulled us away from our academic mission and goals.”
Protesters first pitched their tents on April 25, with the goal of pressuring the University of Colorado system into cutting ties with Israel, including by divesting from corporations in the Middle Eastern country and ceasing study programs abroad.
Ashby didn’t immediately respond to a question asking whether any of these demands were agreed to by university officials.
On Friday, the University of Colorado Denver told students that classes would take place online “until further notice” due to the encampment, and events held on the Auraria Campus were canceled through next week.
“The encampment was a tool of our protest,” said student activist organization Students for a Democratic Society in an emailed statement. “We are picking up a new one to continue the fight for Palestine.”
Similar protests continue to occur on college campuses nationwide. The latest related developments include a University of Chicago campus building occupied on Friday, the arrest of 19 protesters who tried to occupy a University of Pennsylvania building on Friday and an agreement reached between protesters and Sonoma State University administration on Tuesday in California.
Denver, CO
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