Political and Legislative
The Governor of Colorado Repeals an 1864 Native American Genocide Policy
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) signed an executive order this week to repeal a 157-year-old order that sought to eliminate Indigenous people from the Colorado territory.
The original orders were issued by Territorial Governor John Evans in 1864 and forced Indigenous families into certain camps while calling for Coloradans to “kill and destroy” those deemed to be “hostile Indians” in exchange for money and stolen property.
Less than a year after the proclamations were issued, more than 600 U.S. volunteer soldiers attacked a village of more than 700 Cheyenne and Arapaho people in what is known as the Sand Creek Massacre. It is widely regarded as one of the worst mass murders in American history.
