Denver, CO — One Colorado, the state’s leading advocacy organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) Coloradans and their families, joined leading civil rights, racial justice, disability, religious and allied organizations to launch the Open to All Colorado campaign on Thursday, December 6th, 2018 at Gary’s Auto.

Open to All is the nationwide public engagement campaign to build understanding and discussion about the importance of protecting people from discrimination—and the bedrock principle that when businesses open their doors to the public, they should be Open to All.

Local and national businesses large and small, including Yelp, Marriott International, Gap Inc., Levi Strauss and Company, and Lyft join 200+ nonprofits, such as the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the NAACP-LDF, One Colorado, and ProgressNow Colorado, to oppose discrimination and declare that they are Open to All regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, religion or disability.

One Colorado Executive Director Daniel Ramos:

“In June of this year, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Colorado’s non-discrimination laws that protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer Coloradans and their families in the Masterpiece Cakeshop decision and it’s important that all Coloradans -- regardless of who they are --  know that businesses in our state serve everyone on the same terms.”

Colorado Lieutenant Governor Donna Lynne: “When a business opens its doors to the public, it should be open to everyone on the same terms. And too many Americans and Coloradans are still facing discrimination when they try to buy goods and services from businesses in their community.  Government needs to lead, and so do businesses.”

CEO of the Denver Chamber of Commerce Kelly Brough: “What we love about this pledge and this commitment is how easy it is to make it and how much sense it makes, because frankly, it’s reinforcing the very laws we have in Colorado and our values. We are asking you to consider taking the pledge as well with all of us.”Executive Director of Good Business Colorado Debra Brown: “Good Business Colorado believes that it’s not enough to be a job creator; you have to create good jobs where employees are safe and workplace is free from discrimination and that these basic protections of human rights should be extended to their customers so that people know no matter what business you frequent in this great state of Colorado, we have no tolerance for discrimination.”

Owner of Gary’s Auto Dan Shannon: “We’ve always considered our business to be one that exists to serve all of our customers to the best of our abilities. We signed Open to All because we value inclusion, tolerance, and understanding, which are values that help make our community more livable.”Denver City Council At-Large Robin Kniech: “The City of Denver, and communities like ours across Colorado, are made up of a rich tapestry of diverse residents and businesses. This tapestry gives each neighborhood distinct character, fuels a significant portion of our economy, and ensures residents can access the goods and services we need in our daily lives. We depend upon each other, our residents and our businesses, which is why it is critical businesses are open to all our residents.”

A live stream of the event can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/onecolorado/videos/2400292310005174/

To learn more about the national campaign, visit www.opentoall.com. Colorado businesses interested in joining the campaign can sign up at https://opentoallcolorado.com/.