Milestone at the Capitol with 2 blacks at top posts at same time
By Lynn Bartels, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Published January 3, 2009 at 12:05 a.m.
Photo by Barry Gutierrez © The Rocky
Senate President Peter Groff, left, and House Speaker-elect Terrance Carroll are preparing for their historic roles when the legislative session begins Wednesday.
In the same grand chambers where the Ku Klux Klan once held sway, two black men will assume the most powerful positions in the Colorado General Assembly.
When the legislature convenes next week for its 2009 session, Peter Groff will again be elected Senate president, while Terrance Carroll will assume the post of speaker of the House.
Colorado is the first legislature in the nation to have two blacks holding the top posts at the same time.
Not Arkansas.
Not Michigan.
Not Mississippi.
Not Illinois, or South Carolina or any other state where blacks come much closer to being the demographic majority.
It's Colorado, where blacks make up only 4 percent of the population.
Carroll and Groff - both Denver Democrats and the only black members among the 100-member assembly - say they are grateful for that chance to be a part of history.
Groff said he was struck by his situation when he attended the recent National Black Caucus of State Legislators in Washington, D.C.
During roll call, dozens of conference-goers would stand up as their states were called: Alabama . . . Georgia . . . Maryland.
"Then they say 'Colorado,' and it's just me. I'm on the executive committee, and I stand up and say, 'Here.' "
Colorado, known for its flinty and independent political ways, may have been the perfect place to make history.
"It's always been my spiel that here in the West we look at things differently," said Wellington Webb, who in 1991 became Denver's first black mayor.
"We're more interested in results than in social or historical pedigrees like in the South or the East. We have more of a wagon train philosophy. We only want to know, 'Can you get the wagon train over the mountains?'
"If you can deliver and you do a good job and work hard, people will take a chance on you."
It's not exactly a stretch to see how Groff came to politics: He is the son of former lawmaker Regis Groff, who served from 1974 to 1994. The elder Groff said he often mentioned the Ku Klux Klan's presence in Colorado during the 1920s on the floor of the Senate in the years he fought to make Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday a state holiday.
"I used to teach social studies in junior high, and one of the books we used had a picture of the KKK marching down Colfax Avenue," Regis Groff said.
The Groffs moved to Colorado from Illinois when Peter was just 3 months old. He graduated from Denver's East High School and eventually went to work for former Gov. Roy Romer and former Mayor Webb.
He was first elected to the House in 2000 and later was appointed to a vacancy in the Senate.
Groff has never been shy about making his thoughts known, including in 2006, when Rep. Jim Welker apologized on the floor of the House for forwarding an essay criticizing New Orleans hurricane victims as "immoral, welfare-pampered blacks."
Other lawmakers accepted Welker's apology, but Groff questioned the Loveland Republican's sincerity.
"Maybe he should go to Sears and see what size sheets and hoods they have," Groff said at the time.
Glare of the spotlight
Groff made history by becoming the first black president of the Senate in late 2007, when then-Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald stepped down to run for Congress full time.
Peter Groff's official election to the post came on the opening day of the 2008 legislature before a standing-room-only crowd in the Senate chambers. Black women cried in the balcony, and Groff was feted at luncheons and banquets.
He knows that when the session opens Wednesday the focus will be not on him, but on Carroll.
For that, Groff is relieved.
"Thank goodness," he said. "I was so over me by the time opening day came around last year. I'll be glad to have him take all of the attention."
Carroll hadn't planned to run for the House majority leader post. But on Nov. 4, Rep. Bernie Buescher of Grand Junction - expected to be elected speaker - was upset in his re-election bid. Carroll went for the post, defeating two other speaker contenders.
"It's something, isn't it?" Carroll said.
"When I have an opportunity to slow down and think about it, I'm absolutely amazed that this kid who grew up in the ghetto would be part of history in Colorado. It's amazing to me."
Carroll grew up in Washington, D.C.'s drug- and violence-ridden Capitol Hill and Anacostia neighborhoods, the latter of which was known as "Dodge City within Dodge City."
He was the only child of a single mother who was a sharecropper's daughter, a domestic who scrubbed floors to make a better life for him. She took her son to Boy Scouts and to church on Sundays.
'This is off the map'
Carroll won his election to the House in 2002 and became chairman of the House Judiciary Committee in 2005 after Democrats won the majority.
Carroll recently was trying on overcoats at a store when an elderly black man approached him.
"He said, 'I know you. You're that guy in politics. You make us all feel so proud.' That touched me," Carroll said.
Webb, who served in the legislature before becoming Denver's three-term mayor, will be in the House when Carroll takes his oath of office. So will Webb's wife, Wilma, a former lawmaker instrumental in making King's birthday a holiday.
"It is unbelievable to think that in 2009 there will be a person of color as president of the United States, president of the Colorado Senate and speaker of the Colorado House," Wellington Webb said.
"This is off the map."
Perhaps. But it's on the wagon train.
Senate president
SEN. PETER GROFF
* Age: 45
* Birthplace: Chicago
* Residence: Denver
* Occupation: Director of the University of Denver's Center for African American Policy; university lecturer
* Previous jobs: assistant to then Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, assistant to former Denver City Councilwoman Happy Haynes, worked in former Gov. Roy Romer's ombudsman's office
* State lawmaker: 2001 to present
* Education: Bachelor's degree in communication from University of Redlands, Calif.; law degree from University of Denver
Goals for the 2009 session
* Help the Senate create an environment and opportunities for job creation in the state
* Reduce the concept of "permanent campaigns" that drives constant partisanship in the Senate and be a fair president of the Senate
* Continue to push Colorado as a national leader in substantive and meaningful reform of public education
* Limit the required budget cuts on those that live on the margins - or at least remind my colleagues that budget cuts impact real people
* Work with both sides to lift the trajectory of Colorado's future
House speaker
REP. TERRANCE CARROLL
* Age: 39
* Birthplace: Washington, D.C.
* Residence: Denver
* Occupation: attorney at Greenberg Traurig
* Previous jobs: police officer, ordained minister
* State lawmaker: 2003 to present
* Education: University of Denver College of Law, 2005; master of divinity, Iliff School of Theology, 1999; bachelor's degree, Morehouse College, 1992
Goals for the 2009 session
* Leave the state in a better condition than it is now
* Accomplish a long-term solution for our transportation funding problems
* Serve as a role model for younger blacks
* Avoid, for now at least, making fun of Republicans
* Ensure that lawmakers don't feel the need to throw their shoes at me while I'm presiding
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January 3, 2009
9:42 a.m.
Suggest removal
leavemealone writes:
If their qualified, outstanding.
Who cares what color their skin is - other than the media.
& a little advise.....stop coming up with new laws that do nothing except make you feel good.
Otherwise, Mr. Carroll, I will gladly throw my boots at you!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh, & I won't miss.
January 3, 2009
10:06 a.m.
Suggest removal
Michael writes:
"It is unbelievable to think that in 2009 there will be a person of color as president of the United States, president of the Colorado Senate and speaker of the Colorado House," - Wellington Webb
If you replaced "person of color" with "colored person" would that be grammatically identical but 180 degrees off of being politically correct? Congratulations to Mr. Groff & Mr.Carroll but until we lose the absurd PC stuff and all the energy wasted on it, we still have a ways to go on this race stuff. Couldn't Webb have simply said "a black guy"? It is the most accurate description as even white guys have color, pale though it may be.
January 3, 2009
10:09 a.m.
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cdmdenver writes:
I'm Curious to see what the Colorado Legislators have planned..
Tough Economic times, some of these frivilous and costly
laws passed by previous legislators are contributing to
the current financial Defecits!
What will this current Legislative body come up with to
reduce costs, and improve our current financial defecits
in Colorado? This requires common sense and real innovation!!
Colorado is watching our lawmakers and we expect results.
January 3, 2009
10:17 a.m.
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Denver1212 writes:
Dear God, I will so happy when news can just be news, and all Amerians will be just that. Why oh why?? does it have to be African Americans, I do not see news articles about Michael Bennet listed as an Irish American....
January 3, 2009
10:25 a.m.
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Nobama writes:
When the main stream news media stops making this a news item, we'll know we've achieved some equality and perspective in this country. What bothers me a little is that these two gentlemen would patronize the RMN by doing the story.
January 3, 2009
11:06 a.m.
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Oh_Wise_One writes:
How pathetic is this? So what if they are Negro/African/Black hyphen American, they earned it. What happened to MLK and his "content of character"? Do these two Dimocratics have any or is it just about skin color. We got one Affirmative Action president who will now have to prove his capability on action other than voting present. God help us all.
January 3, 2009
11:07 a.m.
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HopiMedicineMan writes:
It's not business as usual here. This paper has two weeks to live. Reporters are appealing to many different segments for future employment. Where there's power, there's employment.
Denver1212
Bennet is Irish, really. I'm disappointed. He definately looks Tewa.
January 3, 2009
11:11 a.m.
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TheDenverB writes:
i'm sure even these two black men would tell you that this is an accomplishment for two black men.
you'd all like to pretend we are all equal and that this shouldn't be a big deal (and you are right, it shouldn't be a big deal) ... but lets all face reality -- in THIS STATE, that is a big deal.
if it wasn't a big deal, it would have likely happened well before 2008
January 3, 2009
11:16 a.m.
HopiMedicineMan writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
January 3, 2009
11:29 a.m.
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HopiMedicineMan writes:
DenverB
You got it. There's far less racism in Georgia than Colorado. Georgia is more integrated in every possible category. And, unlike here, minorities and whites have interracial frienships and marriages. There's a lot of mind-your-place prejudice here that comes from the left. So these two were positioned for political purposes.
January 3, 2009
11:33 a.m.
HopiMedicineMan writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
January 3, 2009
11:42 a.m.
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chucky3 writes:
"Serve as a role model for younger blacks" Maybe he should serve as a role model to all children. After all, we are all created in Gods image. He is a Minister; he should understand that Christ did not use color. If the kid is black, or white he is still a kid. The only reason you would want to be an example to one and not the other is because you are holding prejudice against everyone other than blacks.
January 3, 2009
11:45 a.m.
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HopiMedicineMan writes:
Pointing out racial prejudice by the left, is about the most politically incorrect thing you can do.
January 3, 2009
12:13 p.m.
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Astaroth writes:
Sue me for sounding racist, but isn't that exactly what's happening here? Not too long ago, black people were barred from, well, everywhere because of WHAT they were, not WHO they were. Along comes MLK Jr. with delusions of equality... 45 years later, we're still not there, for here we are again, talking about people based on WHAT they are, and not WHO they are. It's truly fantastic that Groff and Carroll are where they are, make no mistake about that; they've accomplished a lot. The same could be said for Obama; he, too, accomplished a lot. However, had the black voters who typically stayed home for elections not come out in droves this year to support Obama (because of WHAT he was, not WHO he was), would he have won? I, for one, await the day when King's dream truly becomes a reality, when people can be based on their merits, rather than their heritage.
January 3, 2009
1:01 p.m.
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FCZ writes:
Now can we get rid of the expensive ' affirmative action ' scam ?
January 3, 2009
1:13 p.m.
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HopiMedicineMan writes:
Astaroth
Despite these gains, the spirit of the KKK lives on. For example, at the Colorado State Republican Assembly, of the 17,000 attending, about 20 percent were minorities. Five minority groups gave presentations to the delegates. Their message, their enthusiasm —their courage-- saw no coverage from either paper. Yet minorities at the Democratic Assembly were given more than appropriate coverage.
Republican ethnic minorities aren’t supposed to exist. They don’t know their place. In fact, it seemed to me the reporters on the scene attempted to associate the GOP with racism, rather than state what occurred at the Assembly. Those attending expected to see stories and photographs in the Rocky. That coverage was missing altogether resulted in a backlash against the Rocky. Ignoring these minorities turned out to be a major public relations failure.
Now the Rocky is going out of business and even to my dismay, I’m hearing phrases such as, “One down, one to go.” I don’t share the sentiment, but I understand where it comes from. I get those knots in my stomach too, especially when I read an article about the KKK and am witness to happened at the Assembly.
As the press ignored the Assembly, it is ignoring the environmental land grab from American tribes. There’s another knot.
Ignored at the Assembly were those representing: Blacks, Hispanics, Indians (eastern), Jews and Native Americans. These same groups showed up at the Palin/McCain rally in Colorado Springs and the Palin event in Jefferson County and were ignored by the Denver papers. That’s liberal on minority racism.
January 3, 2009
2:06 p.m.
Suggest removal
LSentrik writes:
Really, sometimes it seems as if the media are the ones who are bringing out all of the racism issues. It gets annoying. I thought we had finally "overcome" and "changed in a way we can believe in".
"In the same grand chambers where the Ku Klux Klan once held sway, two black men will assume the most powerful positions in the Colorado General Assembly."
Is this really necessary?
Regardless, congratulations to Peter Groff and Terrence Carroll.
January 3, 2009
4:16 p.m.
Suggest removal
The_Punnisher writes:
I guess my earlier comments on the KKK were a bit of REALITY. Even the Rocky admits it..
So how about purging the KKK MENTALITY IN THE DPD???
Or are they still proud of that " WE BEAT THE CROWDS " image??..
Or that " We have to teach those _________ a lesson on who's boss around here "....
Until THAT mindset changes, it looks like the Colorado/Denver KKK types still rule...
Words don't change anything. ACTIONS do!
January 3, 2009
4:40 p.m.
Suggest removal
rage_against_the_stupid writes:
The Democrats were the party of racial discrimination in the 1920's in Colorado and they are the party of racial quotas and racial favoritism, I mean racial discrimination today. Unless, you are some white guy from DC with family party ties, then you can be the next senator. What a bunch of screwed up people.
January 3, 2009
4:46 p.m.
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JustSayin writes:
Wow - I really feel as if I'm represented at the General Assembly - NOT!
January 3, 2009
8:26 p.m.
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me2 writes:
In this bigoted state, this kind of is a big deal. And that business about being pc, well to be pc you call people what they want to be called, that is also good manners and shows some kindness and compassion. What YOU want to call them should be left up to THEM. Untill you know just use Mr. or the dreaded Ms.
But if just calling it pc makes you feel better than please do so.
January 3, 2009
8:47 p.m.
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ou8one2 writes:
Change has arrived! The KKK has been replaced by the Black Panthers, the NAACP, and the Nation of Islam. The DNC, change you can believe in!
January 3, 2009
9:12 p.m.
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me2 writes:
And that verbal zit eruption from ou8one2 is a prime example of what I mean by this bigoted state. Thanks 82 for chiming in just when it was needed.
January 3, 2009
9:18 p.m.
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ThingFish writes:
You're just plain ignorant mexicanposingashopi.
January 3, 2009
10:27 p.m.
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ez2amuze writes:
Race is never news. It's just a statistic. Get over it.
January 3, 2009
10:38 p.m.
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avsfan71085 writes:
why is this news? Who cares the color of their skin...
January 4, 2009
2:26 a.m.
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jrhino writes:
Terrance Carrol's pro illegal alien agenda is completely out of touch with Colorado.
January 4, 2009
3:12 a.m.
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BenchBoss writes:
Wow. Ignorance really is bliss. Just thought I'd drop in to remind myself why I don't spend much time here anymore. This happens to be historic whether you like it or not.
If race really isn't a big deal then you shouldn't have a problem with the paper writing a piece on it. Don't like it, don't read it. Hardly much in the Rocky is news these days but this article draws your ire for obvious reasons.
As mentioned previously, anywhere else and this might not be news. My hometown and public schools were (and still are) 50/50, black and white. This story would not have needed to be written because this milestone was passed a long time ago. In Colorado, quite a different story. Grow up. The world is changing all around you. You may not like it but I doubt very seriously if posting your tired whiny complaints on this thread will do anything to stop the clock...... tick.... tock.....
January 4, 2009
7:22 a.m.
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LOUIE writes:
Seems the Rocky and the media are more concerned with their color than the people are; that's a good thing. It shows we are electing people based on character instead of race or gender. As far as the Klan holding sway today? They'll be holding sway all right; from the rafters with their feet swaying back and forth if the majority of people get their way.
January 4, 2009
7:27 a.m.
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LOUIE writes:
Hey HOPI, when you go back in history, from the civil war to the early 1960's, guess which party was the party of the KLU KLUX KLAN, especially down south? During this same period guess which party had a lock on the minority vote nationwide in many elections outside the south?
January 5, 2009
3:56 p.m.
Suggest removal
lastdance writes:
"Colorado is the first legislature in the nation to have two blacks holding the top posts at the same time. "
That's why it's news. It may not matter to most of you but it actually is historical. Why did they mention they were black? Probably because it's relative to the story and the fact that it has never happened before.
I think it's important to put things like this in the news because it reflects the direction of the nation. Good and bad. Some people see this as progress and others simply "get the feeling that black people won't be satisfied until they are the ones cracking the whip"