Although Percy did not intend for the book fair to be a political statement against book-banning, she acknowledged that with local and national efforts to restrict certain books from libraries, it’s hard to separate an event that celebrates free access to a diversity of books from the controversy.
Category: Social justice
Posted inSocial justice
Garfield County commissioners appoint two new library trustees amid book restriction controversy
Amid ongoing controversy over Garfield County’s library board appointment process and whether book restrictions should be considered at the county’s six county’s six libraries, officials received 27 applications for three seats that were open or up for reappointment by the end of this year.
Posted inSocial justice
What would it take to achieve an equitable transition to clean energy in Garfield County?
According to a recent Garfield County Economic Update from the Davis School of Business at Colorado Mesa University (CMU), oil and gas jobs grew significantly in the county in the mid-2000s, and have since been declining over the past 15 years, falling below 1,000 in 2023 from roughly 3,000 jobs in 2008.
Posted inSocial justice
Aspen Meadows promises pay parity for returning J-1 students after international workers raise concerns
Each year, hundreds of young people from around the world get J-1 visas to work on the mountain and at local businesses in Aspen. But complaints about housing and working conditions raise questions about a program that can make international students vulnerable to unfair treatment.
Posted inSocial justice
Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains braces for increase in people traveling to Colorado for abortion care
The mixed results among states, on top of the reelection of former President Donald Trump, probably mean even more people will be traveling for care.
Posted inSocial justice
New openings on the Garfield County Libraries’ board renew debate over book restrictions and government oversight
“There’s enough controversy about this that my perspective is we want to see some diversity of opinion on the library board, where there’s discussion back and forth, instead of what I would call, I guess, ‘like-think,’” Garfield County Commissioner Tom Jankovsky said in an interview.
Posted inSocial justice
Mobile home park water-quality testing program gets underway, but residents will have to wait for fixes
Although it’s too early to know the full scope of water quality issues at mobile home parks across Colorado, Hosie expects that problems are more likely to be found in communities such as Apple Tree that have their own water system.
Posted inSocial justice
Mobile home park residents to ask Garfield County to opt-in to state funds for affordable housing
Proposition 123 funds are only available to local governments, including towns, cities and counties, that opt-in to the program, and Garfield County is one of 21 out of 64 counties in the state that hasn’t opted-in.
Posted inLocal Public Data
‘We’ve never really been older before’
Full-time residents are getting older in the Roaring Fork Valley, as in most of the United States, but the local economy and its challenges are highlighting this generational rebalancing. The midvalley area has seen the most dramatic demographic shift in recent years with the older-adult population growing faster and in some towns now outnumbering children.
Posted inSocial justice
Habitat for Humanity’s latest project in Glenwood Springs aims to make homeownership more attainable
Pueden encontrar la versión en español aquí. People working in the Roaring Fork Valley could soon have a new opportunity to buy a condo at a more affordable rate in Glenwood Springs. Local nonprofit Habitat for Humanity of the Roaring Fork Valley (Habitat RFV) has plans to turn an already existing apartment building near the Glenwood […]