Social Justice

A yearslong effort by some local residents to remove or restrict kids’ access to certain adult books from Garfield County’s public libraries has been largely unsuccessful so far, but with the recent appointment of two new library trustees by the county commissioners and the library district’s executive director about to retire, changes could still be coming.

After decades leading public libraries across Colorado, Garfield County Libraries Executive Director Jamie LaRue has announced he’ll be retiring in early April. LaRue is a staunch advocate for intellectual freedom and has been outspoken against local and national efforts to censor books.

In 2023, Alan Muñoz helped launch the Civic Leader Education and Advocacy Program with Voces Unidas in Mexico City. Before this year’s program in May, Muñoz traveled to Mexico early to see his family in Calvillo Aguascalientes, many of whom he had never met. This is the final story in a three-part series documenting the journeys of DACA recipients in Mexico.

Before this summer, Miguel González, an apprentice electrician who grew up in the Colorado River Valley, only knew stereotypes of his home country. However, a travel permit that allowed him to fly internationally as a DACA recipient in May gave him a vision of real Mexico and helped him fulfill an application requirement for his green card. This is the second story in a three-part series documenting the journeys of DACA recipients in Mexico.

Luz Galaviz, a third grade teacher in Rifle, normally can’t travel abroad due to her immigration status. But after securing advance parole in May, she flew to Mexico City for a leadership conference with Glenwood Springs nonprofit Voces Unidas, despite concerns that she may not be allowed back into the U.S. This is the first story in a three-part series documenting the journeys of DACA recipients in Mexico and how the trips could change their lives in the Colorado River Valley.

The local screening is organized by Cook Inclusive Company and Arc of the Central Mountains — both organizations focused on disability advocacy and services.

Aspen Family Connections will receive $625,000 from the White House over five years to build a coalition of stakeholders and address substance abuse among students in the upper Roaring Fork Valley. Colorado data shows improvements since 2021, but students in Aspen continue to use alcohol and tobacco products at higher-than-average rates.

Habitat for Humanity Roaring Fork Valley is building a factory in Rifle to manufacture affordable modular housing. It will also provide workforce training for locals.

The town of Carbondale set up temporary shelters to protect people from winter temperatures after dozens of Venezuelan immigrants moved to the Roaring Fork Valley last fall. Town trustees don’t plan to reopen temporary shelters this year, but will continue to discuss its response to unhoused residents.

Restaurant owners and patrons at Glenwood Meadows Shopping Center on Sept. 2 were unsure if the area was safe in the hours following an officer-involved shooting that left one person dead.