Boulder County Latino History
Boulder County Latino History
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  • The Shootings in Longmont and Founding of El Comité, 1980

The Shootings in Longmont and Founding of El Comité, 1980

This set describes the 1980 shooting of two young Latinos by a police officer in Longmont and the formation of El Comité to represent the Latino community.

Full Text PDF: Chapter 7: Chicano Civil Rights Activism in the Later 1960s and 1970s

100 protest in Longmont, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Articles about Glenn Herner’s acquittal on manslaughter charge, 1981, p. 1

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Crowds bid farewell to victims; citizens trace incident’s roots, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Document of understanding, City of Longmont, El Comite, U.S. Department of Justice, 1980, p.1

February 16, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Driver recalls night of shooting; one officer fired both bullets, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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El Comite seeks permanent status, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Inquest into shooting deaths, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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One officer fired both bullets; aim of public meeting to ease tensions, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Sorrow, anger, hope fill meeting, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Two men shot by police, 1980

February 11, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Historian Comments

A tragic set of quick decisions by a rookie Anglo policeman led to the death of two young unarmed Latinos in Longmont in 1980. The sources included here, mainly from local newspapers, illustrate developments almost day-by-day during the following weeks. The response of the Latino community is an admirable example of determination to work for long-term change. Rather than resorting to violence, Latinas/os pulled together and formed an organization called El Comité to present its concerns about the police to city officials. Because little progress was being made, Latino leaders asked the U.S. Department of Justice to send in a mediator. The recommendations in the resulting Document of Understanding, signed by representatives of the City of Longmont and El Comité, addressed all of the Latinos’ concerns and were implicitly critical of the police. That document gave El Comité a recognized position as the representative of Latino residents. This history offers a contrast to the violence that has broken out after police shootings of Latinos or African-Americans in other places more recently.

Teaching Boulder County Latino History is an extension of the Boulder County Latino History Project. This site provides resources for those interested in teaching Boulder County Latino History. The teaching resources are grounded in the books written by CU Boulder’s Distinguished Professor Marjorie McIntosh.

There are three central components to this site. The Lesson Database provides lessons for K-12 teachers. Each lesson uses primary sources and is grounded in the books by Prof. McIntosh. Beyond the curated lessons teachers are encouraged to explore the Primary Source Sets and access the full text of Prof. McIntosh’s books. The book outlines link lesson plans and primary sources to each chapter. Teachers and students are welcome to download all or parts of the books to support their learning.

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