by Chanel Ward
Denver Mayoral Candidate, Lisa Calderón recently invited the community to help her open the doors to her new official mayoral headquarters at The Laundry on Lawrence Street in Five Points (2701 Lawrence St, Denver) with an Office Opening and Petition party hosted by the law firm, Rathod/Mohamedbhai, LLC.
Calderón met the attorneys of the law firm when she rallied with the community for justice in the killing of 17-year-old Jessie Hernández by Denver police in 2015.
“I worked with the lawyers here along with a lot of other community members to really put pressure on the current administration to do the right thing and to provide, to the extent they could, justice for her [Hernández] family by getting a settlement for them. So that is actually the roots of my relationship with the attorneys here, Qusair Mohamedbhai and Siddhartha Rathod,” explained Calderón.
When asked about the goal of the headquarters, Calderón said, “to center it in one of the epicenters of the gentrification battle. Not far from here was the scene from the Ink! Coffee controversy where the sign was put out about, ‘happily gentrifying Denver since 2014’ and that actually sparked a movement that myself and Candi CdeBaca were a part of where we said our leaders aren’t listening to us; and you know we have been challenging this administration for years and things are getting worse, not better. Displacement is increasing, working families are struggling even more and are being pushed to the outskirts of the city.”
CdeBaca will also be on the upcoming ballot in Denver, running for City Council’s District 9. CdeBaca attended the Office and Petition Party and explained why she supports Lisa for Mayor, “Lisa is someone who I have looked up to, I’ve watched her work in the community and I’m thrilled to have an option like her running for our Mayor right now.
“I think Lisa is probably one of the most qualified candidates Denver has ever had running; a woman with as many degrees, the variety experience that she’s had in and outside of government is exactly what we need,” stated CdeBaca.
While the woman of the hour hosted the event, the location of the night stirred its own buzz. “I love it!” exclaimed CdeBaca who added, “I’m happy that it’s in my district, I’m happy that it’s in a place that I call my home, my sister used to live across the street and so to have a mayoral candidates office across the street from a place that I frequented as a child, it means a lot to me, and it’s in the heart and soul of Denver.”
Another supporter, Jacqui Shumway, the owner of the Living Younger Longer Institute health clinic with her husband also came out to support Lisa, “I thought she was one of the most powerful activists I had ever met and I think it’s unusual that people can go from being an activist to being someone who can govern,” said Shumway, who thinks Lisa has definitely made that transition and is running to win.
Shumway added, “I think people need to believe in our government again and I think they need to stop saying government doesn’t work and instead say hey, let’s make it work.”
Calderón ended the evening by thanking everyone who came out in support, despite the freezing temperatures. “We don’t need big money behind us.”
Calderón’s message was clear, “this is the power, and what we need to do is make sure that we’re sending a message to the city of Denver and to our elected leaders, that the power is in the people.” she said.
For more information about Lisa Calderón’s campaign, visit: lisa4DenverMayor.org.
Chanel Ward is an Independent Reporter for The Weekly Issue/El Semanario.
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