Denver's Chicano Movement
Students of West High School staged a walkout in 1969 that changed everything.
If you’ve never heard of the Chicano Movement, Baby Swoop is here to educate you on the history of Denver’s Mexican-American protest for change that all started in 1969 at West High School in the neighborhood of Colfax. This social justice movement was brought to light by a student here at Community College of Denver whose father was heavily involved in the Chicano Movement and how he raised her to be a proud Chicana.
On March 20, 1969, Denver West High School organized a walkout with the support of Denver’s Crusade for Justice, founded by Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales. Close to 300 students staged a walkout and march to Baker Junior High School to protest. The students were advocating for more bilingual classes, incorporating Chicano history and literature into the curriculum, land/labor rights, and for teachers to stop advising students to join the military during the Vietnam War. Mind you, the Vietnam War is one of, if not the biggest, failures in the history of the United States in terms of war and an extremely controversial topic during this time. More so, some of the faculty shamed the students of West High for speaking Spanish and would intentionally mispronounce their names.
Once West High students returned to their school, they were greeted by Denver Police Department wearing riot gear, ordering them to go across the street to Sunken Gardens Park. Violence broke out, as one would expect. Cops were seen beating students with nightsticks, using pepper spray, and even pulling girls’ hair. That day, 25 people were arrested, and six were injured, including one police officer.
The next day on March 21, 1969, around 1,200 people and students from various high schools around Denver gathered to protest again. This time they marched from West High to Lincoln Park, where violence once again ensued. Protesters were throwing rocks and beer cans at police.
The two demonstrations started four days of unrest in Denver that became known as the “blowouts” and kicked off the Chicano Movement around the nation. While we know society still has work to do, this movement made huge strides toward improving education here in Denver.
As an example, CCD is proud to be federally recognized as a Hispanic Serving Institution for more than 20 years. Today, West High School, which is made up of nearly 85% Hispanic/Latino students, has a Latinx principal, Mia Martinez Lopez. You can also visit the Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales public library on Irving Street, which was dedicated to his efforts to help Chicanos in Denver.