Congressman seeks investigation of violent anti-ICE protest

Denver police also confirmed that three citations were issued during the demonstration. Two were given to juveniles for graffiti, and Armando Geneyro, 43, was charged with simple assault.

News of the violence led U.S. House Rep. Jeff Crank, R-Colorado Springs, on Tuesday to request an investigation in a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division. The letter is addressed to Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon, who oversees the division. The Center Square reached out to the department for comment but did not hear back before publication time.

The Colorado Youth Coalition organized some of the protests and effectively rallied over 150 schools across the state to protest against ICE. This comes as part of greater state-wide pushback from both constituents and public officials as the Trump administration implemented stronger efforts to crack down on illegal immigration. 

Rep. Crank’s letter refers to on-the-ground reporting that shows some walkouts turned violent. His letter specifically referenced “assaults on journalists and counter protesters, raising serious concerns about whether participants were unlawfully prevented from exercising their own constitutional rights."

Crank, who represents the 5th Congressional District, also said “leftists and socialist groups” like the Democratic Socialists of America, Indivisible and 50501 Colorado, are a “real threat to law and order in the United States,” because they have advocated for defunding federal and state law enforcement. 

Sarah Parker, 50501’s national coordinator, told The Center Square that Crank’s characterization of the organization is “disingenuous.” 

She noted that 50501 did not advise students to act violently, adding those who did are solely responsible for their actions. She said students were told to protest peacefully.

“We are a nonviolent movement," Parker said, adding that 50501 trains protesters on how to deescalate tense situations.

“On a larger level, if he is concerned about high schoolers, he should be concerned about the gun violence and school shootings happening around the country, especially in Colorado," Parker said about Crank.

Some of Colorado's recent protests took place on school grounds, whereas other students walked down main streets neighboring their schools. A large majority gathered at Denver's La Alma-Lincoln Park.

Scott Pribble, the communications director at Denver Public Schools, told The Center Square that the district and school leaders reminded students that they have the right to protest - peacefully.

He also noted that in accordance with the district’s policies on absences, students were marked absent unless called out by a parent or guardian.

The Center Square also asked whether the district has concerns about outside political organizations encouraging students to leave school to participate in demonstrations.

 “While Denver Public Schools honors students' rights to protest safely and respectfully, uninterrupted class time remains the key to a solid education," Pribble answered.

However, some individuals have noted that these protests come at a time when Colorado’s public education system appears to be lacking in academic performance. 

Nate Marsh, a Republican running for the 43rd House District in the state's General Assembly and a current senior deputy district attorney for Douglas County, shared his concerns with The Center Square. 

“Schools should protect students’ constitutional rights while maintaining a focused educational environment,” Marsh said. “There is a difference between protecting free speech and turning the school day into a political demonstration. We need to understand that distinction.”

Marsh also noted his concerns with the demonstrations as a whole, as he described seeing Antifa flags and hammer-and-sickle flags, which raised an important question to him. “What exactly were some of these demonstrations about?” 

“People have every right to protest immigration policy, criticize ICE, or advocate for changes in federal law," Marsh told The Center Square. "That’s what the First Amendment protects. But when a protest becomes associated with political movements whose stated goals extend far beyond immigration policy, or when peaceful demonstrations cross the line into violence, we shouldn’t pretend those are simply ordinary civic disagreements."

The state as a whole was recently ranked No. 1 in education by the U.S. News and World Report for Best States, but some observers have characterized the ranking as misleading. 

The report ranked Colorado third in higher education and ninth for Pre-K-12 education, and the first place ranking comes from combining these two categories.

According to BoardHawk, a Colorado news organization that reports on schools, the state’s higher education ranking only came from the percentage of Colorado adult residents who hold a college degree. BoardHawk said the statistics do not factor what percent of these adults were born in Colorado versus adult residents who moved to Colorado after receiving a degree. 

Douglas County, Marsh’s home district, has consistently ranked among one of the best school districts in the state for their students’ academic performance.

“I’m proud of the academic reputation Douglas County schools have built, and that’s exactly why we should be protective of the mission of those schools," Marsh told The Center Square.

“Schools should teach students about the Constitution, the First Amendment, civic participation and how our government works …," the Colorado congressman said. "What schools should not do is encourage students to adopt a particular political ideology.” 

“Public schools belong to all of us — Republicans, Democrats, unaffiliated voters, and everyone else," Marsh said. "Education should not become indoctrination."