Hickenlooper: “Rev. Peters carried that same commitment when he came to Denver and to Colorado. That same commitment to justice… Along the way, he had a significant impact on many of Colorado’s leaders. I was one of them.”
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper spoke on the Senate floor in memory of longtime civil rights leader Reverend Dr. James D. Peters, Jr.
“He knew that they were – that we are – strongest when we’re united, marching hand in hand. Walking next to Rev. Peters, it was impossible not to feel buoyed up by the enduring hope he carried with him pretty much at all times,” said Hickenlooper on the Senate floor.
Reverend Peters was a founding member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and worked with Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. He served as pastor of New Hope Baptist Church in the Denver metropolitan area for 28 years and previously chaired the Colorado Civil Rights Commission. He passed away on Saturday, May 10th.
Hickenlooper continued: “As Rev. Peters’ friend and mentor Dr. King famously said that ‘the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.’ Like many around the country today, I’ve felt that, in recent years, that arc has not bent as far as we had hoped. But, if Rev. Peters’ taught us one thing, it is that neither today or tomorrow is the day to bow our heads.”
Hickenlooper with Rev. Peters outside of the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery.
To download a full video of Hickenlooper’s remarks, click HERE. A full transcript of his remarks is available below:
“I come to the floor today to honor the incredible life of Rev. Dr. James D. Peters, seated here.
“Rev. Dr. James D. Peters, I should say, who passed away last week at the age of 92. And what a life he lived.
“James was truly one of the greatest men I’ve ever known.
“Rev. Peters’ story started not far from these walls here in Washington, D.C.
“He grew up in Washington during a time of deep segregation and became an early leader in the civil rights movements of the 1950s and 1960s and into the 1970s.
“In 1957, he helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference along with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“He worked with Dr. King for many years to help shape the course of American history.
“He marched unbowed in the March on Washington in 1963 and numerous other marches. Notably, Selma across the Edmund Pettus bridge in 1965.
“Rev. Peters carried that same commitment when he came to Denver and to Colorado. That same commitment to justice.
“For more than 28 years, he preached Dr. King’s gospel of freedom and unity as pastor of New Hope Baptist Church, the largest Black church in Denver.
“He also served many years on the Colorado Civil Rights Commission to make Colorado a better place for all our residents.
“Along the way, he had a significant impact on many of Colorado’s leaders. I was one of them.
“In 2003, I was the newly elected Mayor of Denver. Not quite inaugurated yet when on July 5th, Paul Childs was shot and killed in his own front hall by an inexperienced Denver police officer.
“Paul was only fifteen years old. But he was beloved by his community and his death shook the entire city.
“Following that awful tragedy, Rev. Peters, alongside my predecessor, Wellington Webb, who’s one of the great mayors of the 20th century, they helped organize their community and mentored me on the appropriate ways to address this tragedy in such a way that it could be constructive. That somehow the community could be made more stronger and more resilient.
“Reverend Peters knew that the community had to change and use this tragedy to make a better future for the entire community.
“He was one of those leaders who helped us create Denver’s first Citizen Oversight Board to oversee the Denver Police and Sheriff Departments, and make sure any allegation of police misconduct could be investigated. And to make sure all neighborhoods would have an active voice in how their neighborhoods were policed.
“He also helped us start the Office of the Independent Monitor, with subpoena power again to make sure that allegations of police misconduct could be fully investigated.
“Over the past twenty years, the Citizen Board and the Independent Monitor has worked to improve the policies of Denver’s police departments and improve the relationship and the trust between the community and law enforcement.
“Many, many years later, about eight years ago, I was fortunate enough to join Rev. Peters, along with Rev. Dr. Patrick Demmer and a small group, in Montgomery to visit the National Memorial for Peace and Justice – our country’s first national memorial to victims of lynching and racial terrorism in the United States.
“And it’s hard to describe the feeling of that memorial. The power is so immense. The weight of our country’s nagging, persistent shame remains so heavy.
“Walking through the memorial with Rev. Peters, he spoke about his life growing up in Washington D.C. during segregation and his fierce belief in nonviolence and nonviolent movements.
“He reflected on how their nonviolent tactics led more and more people to join them. He knew that they were – that we are – strongest when we’re united, marching hand in hand.
“Walking next to Rev. Peters, it was impossible not to feel buoyed up by the enduring hope he carried with him pretty much at all times.
“I think so many of those lessons from Rev. Dr. Peters still ring true today.
“As Rev. Peters’ friend and mentor Dr. King famously said that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
“Like many around the country today, I’ve felt that, in recent years, that arc has not bent as far as we had hoped.
“But, if Rev. Peters’ taught us one thing, it is that neither today or tomorrow is the day to bow our heads.
“We can’t give up our work and our dreams that Dr. Peters fought for.”
###