How Colorado Swings Between Battleground and Playground for LGBTQ+ Civil Rights.

In Episode 2 of Hate State: Amendment 2 heads to the U.S. Supreme Court, and how Colorado went from a battleground over gay rights to a testing ground for a new generation of anti-LGBTQ+ legal challenges.

How Colorado Helped Build the Anti-LGBTQ+ Playbook

In 1992, Colorado became known as the “Hate State” after voters approved an amendment targeting LGBTQ+ rights, setting the stage for a political playbook that continues to shape the fight for equality today.

While the fight against Colorado’s Amendment 2 reaches the US Supreme Court, establishing a landmark precedent for LGBTQ rights across the country, the pendulum swings — and it swings again. Still.

Starting in the late ‘90s, Colorado makes strides towards becoming a much more welcoming state to LGBTQ people. In 2018, on top of electing the first gay male governor in the country, Coloradans also elected one of the nation’s first transgender state representatives: Democratic state Rep. Brianna Titone. Thanks to their efforts, the state adopts laws to ban conversion therapy, and to protect gender affirming care from interstate prosecution.

But those protections are precisely what make the state a target for a new wave of conservative attacks — this time by the Alliance Defending Freedom, a much larger organization flush with cash, and ready to replicate a strategy that continuously puts LGBTQ rights in the hands of the nation’s highest court.

Their first case: Masterpiece Cakeshop v. The Colorado Civil Rights Division. Civil rights attorney Paula Greisen shares how she navigated ADF’s tactics in the courtroom, and we hear from the next generation of trans civil servants facing the latest wave of conservative attacks.

Hate State is a production of Odd Bird Sound and Word and LOOKOUT News.

Our editors and executive producers are Carolina Murriel and Isis Madrid of Pizza Shark.

This episode was written and produced by Xandra McMahon, Ann Marie Awad, and Chris Fazzari.

Original music by Addison Rider with additional music from Epidemic Sound. Our engineer is Patrick McNameeking.

Archival tape in this episode comes from the documentary “Lesbian Avengers Eat Fire Too.” Thanks to Su Friedrich and Janet Baus at the New York Lesbian Avengers. Thanks also to Colorado Public Radio for allowing us to use tape from a 2019 story about Rep. Brianna Titone.

Please subscribe to hear the next installment, and learn more about our reporting here.

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