Poor People’s Struggles in Colorado: Celebrating Unsung Saints

Adam Barnes

May 7, 2015

Category: From the Front Lines

In May, Willie Baptist and Adam Barnes were invited to Ft. Collins, CO to meet with leaders from poor people’s struggles among the homeless and veterans and against gentrification and displacement. Below, learn more about some of these unsung saints and the fights they’re engaged in.
Days before Willie and I arrived in Ft. Collins the Colorado State legislature voted down the so-called “Right to Rest Act,” which was an attempt to counter laws that treat humans who don’t have permanent housing as criminals. The struggle for the humanity of those without housing is just one of the many battles being waged by the people of Colorado, who like many across the country and world are facing increasingly difficult times. Our host, Cheryl Distaso, is one such person, a brilliant and tireless fighter who has been engaged for over two decades in justice struggles in Ft. Collins and across Colorado. Cheryl seemed to know and be trusted by nearly every key community leader in town and in the short span of three days she introduced Willie and I to nearly every last one of them. Cheryl is the coordinator of up an organization called Ft. Collins Community Action Network (FCCAN), which brings together a wide range of community efforts and leaders in Ft. Collins. Below is a little more about just a few of the incredible leaders who we met and whose stories and insights and commitments indicate that the movement is alive and well in Colorado.

Mary Jancsar moved to Ft. Collins a little over a year ago from a small town in rural Tennessee after her husband was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Doctors told her that her husband might benefit from the many neurologists who have moved to Colorado to be part of scientific studies on Marijuana. Not long after getting to Ft. Collins May and her husband received a letter from Social Security Administration demanding $1,800. They were unable to pay and therefore lost their benefits and found themselves in line at a homeless shelter – a place that Mary told us she never imagined she could be. Her husband’s health deteriorated because they couldn’t afford his treatment. He developed an increasing sense that he was a burden on Mary, which eventually led him to a deep depression and ultimately his decision to stop eating. Mary told us that he died in her arms last year with a peaceful smile. Mary is now a leader in the Ft. Collins Homeless coalition.
Terese Howard is a young leader who helped to found Denver Homeless Out Loud (DHOL). Most recently she has been playing a key role on the “Right to Rest” legislation, which challenges laws that portray people without permanent housing options as criminals. At the core of Right to Rest legislation and ongoing campaign is the absurdly obvious and just as absurdly necessary assertion that those without homes should be recognized and treated as humans. You can read DHOL’s independent study of the effects of these laws on the homeless here.
Betty Aragon-Mitotes has lived in a historically Hispanic neighborhood of Ft. Collins known as Tres Colonias since 1962. The original residents of Tres Colonias were Mexican immigrants who came to work in Ft. Collins’ sugar beet fields. Betty described herself as being shy for most of her life, but she told us that conditions reached such a point in her community that she felt she had no other choice but to confront her fear and find the strength to fight back. Today Betty is a trusted leader in her community. She testifies regularly and vocally in city council meetings, she is working on a documentary film about racism in Ft. Collins, and she is one of the co-founders and curators of the Tres Coloinas Museo which preserves the rich history of her neighborhood and currently faces increasing threats of gentrification.
Stuart Hill is a young man who moved to Ft. Collins from Alaska after, “throwing a dart at the map.” In Alaska he was the only white person in his school. In Ft. Collins he was pushed into homelessness after the small home he was sharing was bought and transformed into a giant home. He shared his compelling story about his experience with homelessness as part of the Right to Rest legislation. Here is an excerpt from Stuart’s testimony as well as a link to the full testimony given as part of the Right to Rest bill.

“I am Stu, Stuart, Stewie, whatever helps you best remember me – I once had a car, a house, a family, and bills – funny at a point in homelessness you like the sound of paying bills again.” … “Don’t we as humans deserve the right to rest? We are humans not cattle, with not enough shelter spaces we need camping not to be ticketed and criminalized, but more simply we need help.”

IVAW Colorado. On our final afternoon in Colorado we were able to meet with several leaders from the Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW). For nearly 3 hours we talked, shared stories, and strategized. Willie and I left feeling grateful to have met and heard from so many great leaders and encouraged that change is gonna come.