Denver City & County Building
1437 Bannock St. | Colfax Avenue & Bannock Street | Golden Triangle Neighborhood
While Colorado repealed its sodomy laws in 1972, the city of Denver retained laws against same-sex dancing, kissing, and other activities that were considered “lewd and lascivious.” Denver Police continued to routinely target gay men, raiding gay bars and arresting people for these types of violations.
Police often entrapped gay men by initiating contact and then arresting the target if the conversation became sexual in nature. Between January and March of 1973, 380 gay men were arrested in these operations. Records proved that 100% of arrests for lewdness were gay men and 99% were initiated by the police, not the civilian.
In 1973, the Gay Coalition of Denver sued the city of Denver to overturn four laws targeting the community. On October 23, the GCD was backed by 300 community members in attending that night’s Denver City Council meeting. The chamber was standing room only and protestors waited for hours for the meeting to begin. City Council president Robert Koch tried to limit the protest and threatened to dismiss council and arrest protestors if the proceedings were disrupted. Gerald Gerash, a founding member of the GCD and the lawyer leading the lawsuit, presented evidence of harassment. Two sympathetic Council members, Irving Hook and Elvin Caldwell, advocated for hearing out the protestors and the meeting extended until 1:00 am as community member after community member spoke. The community’s words were heard; at the next two meetings, the Council repealed the four laws in question, decreasing harassment for LGBTQ+ citizens of Denver. This protest became known as the Gay Revolt at Denver City Council. It was first time that a community group formed and convinced a city to repeal anti-gay laws. In 1974, Gerash won his lawsuit against the city. The court instructed the police to appoint a liaison to the GCD, becoming the first police liaison to the gay community in the state.
Additional Resources
Watch raw footage from the Gay Revolt at Denver City Council on the History Colorado YouTube channel.