CPC played a lead role in raising Colorado’s minimum wage for the first time in 10 years. Our members and staff gathered more signatures than any other organization to place Amendment 42 on the November ballot and knocked on 121,719 doors and made 26,684 calls in 130 Aurora, Denver, and Pueblo precincts to inspire low- and middle-income voters to get out and vote. Amendment 42 overcame $2 million in opposition and won 53% to 47%! Thanks to the support of 415 CPC volunteers giving 18,265 hours of time. On January 1st, 130,000 low-wage Coloradans will get a raise to $6.85 an hour that increases yearly with inflation!

CPC’s Southern Colorado regional office has led an exciting grassroots environmental justice campaign to clean up Pueblo’s Fountain Creek from hundreds of thousands of gallons of raw sewage dumped into it by Colorado Springs Utilities.  CPC has been recognized by U.S. Senator Ken Salazar for our leadership in bringing community voices to the clean-up fight.

CPC’s Health Justice Organizing Project played a key role in passing a state prescription drug affordability law (since vetoed by Governor Owens) and built a broad-based coalition to confront health care disparities and language barriers in health care.  CPC led the fight to secure Senator Salazar’s “no” vote to defeat a multi-billion dollar asbestos corporation ‘bailout’ bill.  We’re now mobilizing thousands of Coloradans to influence a new, state health care ‘Blue Ribbon Commission’ that could expand access to high quality, affordable, and culturally competent health care for all.

CPC’s Rights and Juvenile Justice Education organizers completed a one of its kind “Know Your Rights” curriculum to educate youth and parents to confront overrepresentation of youth of color in Colorado’s juvenile justice system.  CPC also was a key ally to the immigrant justice movement – in the face of hostile political attacks on immigrants – and gave important grassroots support to efforts to defeat ballot attacks on lesbian and gay Coloradans.  Last, but not least, CPC is the sponsor of Colorado Unity, a 10 year old statewide civil rights and equal opportunity network.

In August, CPC’s Tax Fairness Project led the fight to line up votes to stop a deficit busting repeal of the federal estate tax.  CPC also played a key role in fighting the Bush administration’s budget priorities of war and tax breaks for the wealthy at the expense of human needs.  On December 31st, we’ll say a proud ‘goodbye’ to John Kefalas, our Tax Fairness Director, as he leaves CPC for the State Capitol where he’ll be a new (progressive) State Representative from central Fort Collins!

BUILDING A PROGRESSIVE FUTURE FOR COLORADO: In addition to our now 18 member staff, CPC continues our leadership in building a progressive future for our state through our exciting new ‘Grassroots Leadership Academies’ in Aurora and Pueblo.  Modeled after the legendary Freedom Schools of the civil rights movement, we’re bringing new leaders into the movement for progressive social change across Colorado!

CPC joins with Colorado Progressive Action (our sister group), the AFL-CIO, and local senior and community groups to found Coloradans United to Protect Social Security to organize Coloradans to oppose the misguided Social Security privatization scheme. CPC co-organizes a 500 person rally to "welcome" the president to Denver, and begins a pledge drive to stand up for Social Security!

Five years of community organizing and coalition building pay off with the passage of affordable prescription drug legislation at the state legislature. CPC first introduced this legislation in 2001 and has faced drug industry opposition every step of the way. At the time of this writing, the bill is on the governor's desk where he can sign - or veto - the bill.

CPC introduces its new Colorado Tax Fairness Project, part of the new United for a Fair Economy initiated national Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative. The project will focus on educating Coloradans on the important role of government, reforming the devastating aspects of TABOR, and taking on misguided federal tax breaks that lead to service cuts and massive budget deficits for our children and grandchildren.

CPC joins with the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition and other community groups and congregations to take on a proposed massive new $600 million jail and courthouse for downtown Denver. Outspent by at least 10 to 1 we came up short but surprised political observers with a scrappy grassroots campaign that forced the pro-jail campaign to sweat!

CPC's staff expands to 15 talented organizers and activists for social change ranging in age from 17 to 62 and originally from Denver, Brooklyn and Queens (NYC), Maine, Uganda, Afghanistan, Colombia, Johnstown (CO), and Colorado Springs!

CPC opens its second office, in Pueblo, to expand our organizing on local education and health care issues and to build a base of support from racially and economically diverse neighborhoods in Pueblo and the San Luis Valley.

CPC joins with local civil rights, faith, immigrant, and business groups to stop attacks against hard working immigrants in our state coming from right-wing politicians and xenophobic extremists.

CPC named one of the top 5 most effective non-partisan grassroots voter mobilization programs in the nation by True Majority, the national progressive group founded by Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's fame. Why were we recognized? Because we're community-based, committed to diversity and cultural competency, and we stretch limited resources a very long way!

CPC was the lead Colorado organization in defeating legislation that would have eliminated Affirmative Action programs and policies when considering applicants applying to state universities and employment with the state. For its work CPC and the Colorado Unity Coalition were recognized by the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights coalition, for outstanding civil rights leadership.

CPC staff, volunteers, and partner groups registered 27,061 new voters: overwhelmingly new voters who are low- and moderate-income, Black or Latina/o, lesbian or gay, new citizens, or young people.

CPC initiates our new Stop Health Care Discrimination organizing campaign to address racial and ethnic disparities in health care in Colorado and build a base of activism for health care reform.

CPC volunteers and staff collect close to 1,000 health care surveys at local African-American, Latino, and immigrant community events. These surveys will form the basis for a first of its kind report on health care disparities in Colorado.

CPC’s members around the state hosted 10 house parties that drew 350 guests and raised $10,000 to support our work (plus another $5,000 in Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado matching support)!

CPC led Colorado's most successful voter registration drive by engaging 30,000 infrequent voters and increasing voter turnout in Denver, Aurora, and Pueblo by at least 11% to 44%.

CPC registers 1,828 new voters at Denver area bus stops and citizenship ceremonies.

CPC's youth organizing project release a report detailing the failed reforms at Denver's Manual High School. Based on hundreds of student surveys, the report gave voice to students at one of the city's most diverse and under-resourced high schools.

CPC played a key role in educating voters and distributing 30,000 voter guides about the dangers of Amendment 31 and its attacks on our public school system's effective bilingual education programs.

CPC introduces its first prescription drug affordability bill and begins its ongoing leadership on health care access and affordability. The bill makes it past the State Senate but is defeated by drug industry lobbying in the State House of Representatives.

CPC opposes the proposed $500 million (including interest) city jail for Denver and joins the successful campaign to defeat the jail.

CPC is once again recognized by the Chinook Fund with its outstanding grantee award given at a dinner roast for now Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper.

CPC holds its first Getting Out The Vote conference, drawing 150 people to examine the ballot initiatives and themes of the 2000 election. More than 55 local, state, and federal candidates of all political parties join us at an afternoon reception.

CPC recognizes four now retired legislators for their progressive leadership: Senator Mike Feeley, Representative Gloria Leyba, Senator Gloria Tanner, and Senator Penfield Tate.

CPC's youth organizing project publishes a first of its kind report on racial tracking at Denver's prestigious East High School, a practice that limited African-American and Latino student access to advanced classes. Based on 1,000 surveys from East students, the report drew an immediate response from the superintendent who instituted immediate changes in course counseling practices.

CPC begins a five year strategic planning process designed to create a road-map for building long-term progressive power in Colorado.

CPC announces its commitment to being an intentionally anti-racist organization, deepening our commitment to racial justice and to challenging progressive people and groups to confront ongoing internal and systemic issues of race and privilege.

Local high school students come to CPC to work against Nike sweatshops and form what will become the nationally acclaimed Students 4 Justice youth organizing program within CPC. S4J organizes a well covered protest against Nike sweatshops and the new corporate welfare supported Niketown in downtown Denver.

1997 and 1998: CPC plays a leading role in the lobbying campaigns to successfully defeat three state legislative attacks on affirmative action and equal opportunity in Colorado's state colleges and universities, public contracting, and state employment.

Founding Conference for CPC held in Greeley thanks to shared space from the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom International Conference. More than 150 people from 70 community, labor, and faith communities join in the planning for a new progressive coalition.

CPC joins other civil rights, business, and labor organizations as founders of the Colorado Unity coalition to stop a proposed anti-affirmative action ballot initiative. The anti-civil rights initiative did not make the ballot in 1996 and has not since.

CPC joins a massive coalition of education, faith, women's, and children's advocacy organizations in opposing the misleadingly named "Parental Rights Amendment", a right-wing ballot initiative that was floated in Colorado with the intention of spreading nationwide. The initiative was defeated overwhelmingly, a huge defeat for right-wing forces in Colorado.