Researchers find a few surprises as they launch deep look into racial inequity in Colorado

DENVER — Colorado has never allowed slavery, right?

Not exactly, says History Colorado researcher Chloé Duplessis. For instance, there’s evidence Joel Estes, the founder of Estes Park, held five slaves, back when Colorado was a territory.

“Our approach over the next two years is to dive into the archives, to pull up and elevate the research that already is there,” Duplesses says.

And that’s just one misperception Duplessis’ group of researchers have already uncovered since starting work in December. Late last week, the team briefed the Black Coloradan Racial Equity Study Commission — a panel of lawmakers, academics and other Black leaders — about their progress so far.

The study is intended to steer state laws in four key areas: health, education, criminal justice and the wealth gap. Senate President James Coleman is chairing the commission, but it’s being conducted by an outside organization, History Colorado. Money for the project is coming mainly through private funds.

The team plans to spend two and a half years poring through archives to review — and sometimes correct — the historical record of Colorado’s treatment of Black residents. Sundown towns and redlining, health disparities, and differences in sentencing are among the topics they’ll explore.

The study will also gather oral histories from living Coloradans of all races.

“Maybe you drove a bus during integration. Maybe you worked in social services. Maybe you were an educator,” Duplessis says. “We also want to hear from you.”

The team plans to deliver a report, which will then be turned by another organization into policy recommendations. But researchers say they’ll publish findings monthly on the commission’s website as they go along.

They hope the postings will gradually dispel skepticism toward the work. Republicans in the state legislature last year fought the commission’s founding, fearing it’s intended to pave the way toward reparations.

Duplessis points to the Estes finding as an example. Whether Joel Estes held slaves in Colorado has been disputed, but she says her team has found a letter from the family itself that proves it.

“We thought it fitting to honor one of the questions ... that many may use to dismiss the merit of the work that we are doing,” she says.

She left the commissioners with copies of the letter.