DENVER — Three Colorado cities aced what is known as the Municipal Equality Index. That list is released by the Human Rights Campaign and looks at how inclusive policies are for the LGBTQ+ community that lives and works there.
The index specifically looks at municipal laws, policies and services.
"Colorado and Denver especially have come a long way since being known as the 'hate state,' and I think Denver should be proud of the work they've done to advance LGBTQ+ equality for their citizens," said Joe Foster with the Center on Colfax. "But yes, there is a lot more work that needs to be done. A lot of our people in our community still don't have access to the proper mental health care that they need, so there's still some work."
The report is in its 10th year. It rated a total of 506 cities on 49 different criteria from every state in the nation. Boulder, Fort Collins and Denver all got perfect scores.
"What's great about these reports is that it holds our elected officials accountable. So what it tells me is that our elected officials are listening to their citizens," Foster said.
"Things like these reports or certain milestones in our movement, whether it be marriage equality or just having the right to work without fear of losing your job, those are just pitstops on the road to full equality."
Not all Colorado cities that were graded received high marks. Littleton got a 51 out of 100 and Lakewood got a 58. Foster said that shows there is certainly more work to be done.
"There are quite a few cities around this entire state that did not even score close," she said. "The work is not over yet. Our work to be treated as equal citizens of this state and this country, is far from over."
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