Colorado Springs Rep. Ken DeGraaf opposes resolution honoring Black History Month

(DENVER, Colo.) — In a recent session at the Colorado State House, a resolution recognizing February as Black History Month faced unexpected controversy when State Rep. Ken DeGraaf (R-Colorado Springs) emerged as the sole dissenter.

During a session that unfolded on Feb. 1, the only six Black female representatives in the Colorado State House proposed the resolution, aiming to honor the contributions of Black Americans throughout history. Representatives invited students to watch the resolution, which they thought would be a celebration of sorts.

However, Rep. DeGraaf’s objections took center stage as he expressed reservations about the resolution’s language.

“We could or should talk about how the first owner of a chattel slave was a free man of African descent, or how the blood and treasure of Britain and the United States — trillions in today’s dollars went into fighting the slave trade that was promulgated by African-American and Arabian empires who had based their economy,” Rep. DeGraaf said in his speech marked by references to the primacy of verbiage, historical inaccuracies, and challenges to established scientific and historical narratives.

Rep. DeGraaf’s bold statements led the Speaker to call for a recess.

Rep. Regina English (D-Colorado Springs), the first black woman to represent House District 17, and one of the representatives behind the resolution, expressed disappointment with her neighboring representative. She expressed willingness to engage in a conversation before his speech, highlighting that neither she nor her colleagues were aware that he would be delivering such remarks.

“He [Rep. DeGraaf] began to share and act as if he had to correct Black women and give us a history lesson on our own history. It was narcissistic, disrespectful, rude, and obnoxious… I was offended. Many people were offended,” said Rep. English.

Despite the controversy sparked by Rep. DeGraaf’s opposition, other representatives, both Democrats and Republicans, seized the opportunity to voice their support for the resolution.

“Because we are brothers and sisters in arms, regardless of where we came from, who we were, or our backgrounds… My colleagues and I, for the most part, stand in whole support of this resolution,” stated Rep. Richard Holtorf (R-Windsor).

“Black Americans shaped this state. Colorado would not be Colorado without us. And I’m proud to stand in support of this resolution,” said Rep. Leslie Herod (D- Denver).

The resolution eventually passed 60-1, Rep. DeGraaf was the only representative to vote against the resolution.

FOX21 reached out to Rep. DeGraaf for comment, to which he responded with a packet of notes he compiled for his planned remarks in explaining his position. Most of the contents of the notes were verbatim to his speech.

Rep. DeGraaf also stated, “I’m not opposed to “Black History” other than other than that it would be more properly interwoven throughout all history curriculum instead of being relegated to a month.”

Rep. English acknowledges the progress that has been made but highlights that the incident revealed the ongoing need for progress.

“Clearly, this issue, a situation that happened, shows that we have still a lot of work to do,” she said.

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