Denver received top marks Thursday for making the city a welcoming place for gay, bisexual, transgender and queer residents.
The Human Rights Campaign gave Denver a perfect score, for the first time, on its Municipal Equality Index. The Washington, D.C.-based civil rights organization uses the annual index to examines the inclusivity of laws, policies, and services among more than 500 American cities.
“Denver continues to be a leader as a world-class city for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer Coloradans and their families, and we are proud of the work they’ve done to support LGBTQ people,” said Daniel Ramos, executive director of One Colorado & One Colorado Education Fund.
“We hope other cities in Colorado will look to Denver as a model for how to treat their LGBTQ residents with dignity and respect,” Ramos said in a statement.
Denver was the only city in Colorado to earn a perfect score on the index. The city's perfect score comes after Denver City Council voted last year to require that all new and existing single-stall restrooms have signage designating them as gender neutral.
The change was among a series of recommendations identified by Denver’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Queer (LGBTQ) Commission -- a group of 21 volunteers appointed by the Mayor to advise him and his team on legislation, policies, programs, and practices that impact the LGBTQ community.
"In Denver, we stand firmly for the ideals of inclusion, acceptance and opportunity. These are our values,” Mayor Michael Hancock said in a statement.
“We will continue to keep Denver a city that is welcoming to all by standing together against hate and never allowing it to divide our city. We have worked hard to achieve this score, and I’m grateful to the members of my LGBTQ Commission for leading the way,” Hancock added.
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Business & data reporter Adrian D. Garcia can be reached via email at [email protected] or twitter.com/adriandgarcia.
