Colorado Springs Officials Say No to Hate-Crime Resolution

Colorado Springs mayor Steve Bach and members of the City Council refuse to sign a resolution condemning an attack that victims describe as a hate crime.

The Colorado Springs Gazette reports on a rally held Tuesday on the steps of City Hall. Some 40 people, including local Democrats, LGBT community members, and clergy gathered before press officials to denounce the antigay attack and challenge Bach for not issuing a proclamation to endorse a gay pride event just days before the crime.

“The attack happened early July 3 at a north Colorado Springs fast-food restaurant. According to one of the victims, he and two other male dancers who perform at a local gay club and several of their friends were assaulted by a group of five black males and two black females who called them “faggots,’” reports the Gazette. “No arrests have been made.”

While a police sergeant said last week that the attack appeared to be a hate crime, the police chief said at a City Council meeting on Tuesday that it was too soon in the investigation to know.

The Gazette reports that Mayor Bach defended his decision not to sign a PrideFest declaration or the resolution against the attack, arguing that he has condemned the incident in public statements. City councilmember Lisa Czelatdko also rejected claims that Colorado Springs, the headquarters of antigay evangelical groups including the Family Research Council, is intolerant.