DENVER COMMISSION ON COMMUNITY RELATIONS RECORDS

Collection

Identifier: WH903

Staff Only

SCOPE AND CONTENT

The collection spans 1940-2003, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1942-1968, and one item from 2014. The collection contains minutes, agendas, reports, financial statements, pamphlets, newsletters, newspaper clippings, correspondence, membership lists, by-laws, and copies of bills.

SERIES 1 COMMISSION ON COMMUNITY RELATIONS 1945-2014 BOX 1-5

The bulk of this series consists of agendas, minutes, financial statements, reports, by-laws, newspaper clippings, and correspondence between committees. The collection is arranged chronologically within the subseries; the Commission on Human Relations, the Denver Coordinating Council, the City School Project, workshops, and research conducted by the Commission and its committees. Much of the work of the Commission on Humans Relations was accomplished by committees under the Denver Coordinating Council. Membership consists of a combination of staff and community leaders.

SERIES 2 ROCKY MOUNTAIN COUNCIL ON INTER-AMERICAN AFFAIRS 1940-1945 BOX 5-6

The series includes pamphlets, correspondences, newspaper clippings, reports and minutes. Much of the correspondence is between Director Helen Peterson and the Departments of Inter-American Affairs in Washington D.C., reflecting a concern about Nazi activities in Latin America. Some correspondence pertains to Pan American observance day and activities sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Council. This series is arranged chronologically.

SERIES 3 GOVERNMENT 1942-2003 BOX 7-8

The bulk of this series comprises legislation, reports, proposals, by-laws, correspondence, surveys, and policies pertaining to local and national governments through the 1960s. It is arranged chronologically.

SERIES 4 ORGANIZATIONS 1946-1997 BOX 8

Programs, membership lists, correspondence, reports, minutes, program proposals, newsletters, annual reports, financial statements, and organizational histories compose the series. Most of these organizations had members sitting on the Commission on Community Relations committees. This series is arranged alphabetically by organization.

Dates

1940-2014

ACCESS:

The collection is open for research.

OWNERSHIP:

Denver Commission on Community Relations Records are the physical property of the Denver Public Library.

PUBLICATION RIGHTS:

All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from material in the collection should be discussed with the appropriate librarian or archivist. Permission for publication may be given on behalf of the Denver Public Library as the owner of the physical item. It is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which also must be obtained by the customer. The Library does not assume any responsibility for infringement of copyright or publication rights of the manuscript held by the writer, heirs, donors, or executors. Reproduction restrictions are decided on a case-by-case basis.

ORGANIZATIONAL NOTE

Denver Mayor Quigg Newton established the Mayor's Interim Survey in 1947 to investigate Denver's segregation issues. Once the report was completed, the Mayor and City Council decided segregation required immediate action and created the Mayor's Committee on Human Relations. Denver was one of the first cities in the United States to establish a committee for the purpose of addressing segregation. Newton appointed Helen Peterson the director on July 22, 1948. In 1949, an ordinance made the Mayor's Committee on Human Relations a permanent part of city government. In 1959, Ordinance 77 changed the name to the Commission on Community Relations. The Commission consisted of two councils and five committees.

From its establishment in 1948 to 1971, the Commission on Community Relations addressed segregation issues related to African Americans, Spanish Americans, and Native Americans. The Commission's first priority was to desegregate Denver's public swimming pools. The Commission also addressed segregation in education, employment, housing, police actions, and public accommodations, such as restaurants and hotels. In 1956, a group created by the Commission, the Coordinating Council for Education and Research in Human Relations, sponsored bus tours of Denver's low-income areas to demonstrate the need to desegregate Denver's neighborhoods.

In 1984, the Commission on Community Relations became the Agency for Human Rights and Community Relations. It continued to address racial issues while expanding its scope to address ethnic and religious diversity, disability, aging, women, sexuality, and immigration and refugee issues.

Extent

8 Boxes (8 linear feet)

Additional Description

Other Finding Aids

For location information, refer to the Denver Public Library Catalog.

PROVENANCE:

Denver Commission on Community Relations donated the collection in 1968. Additional materials were donated by Guy Mason, City Records Manager, in September 2014.