Serving the community since 1906
WEEK OF MAY 15, 2025
VOLUME 118 | ISSUE 20
$2
order SMILES FOR CINCO DE MAYO P8 Federal a threat to instate tuition
Executive order aimed at ‘sanctuary city’ policies BY JASON GONZALES CHALKBEAT
Brighton strikes “Dianetics Day” proclamation BY SCOTT TAYLOR STAYLOR@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Brighton City Councilors removed a proclamation that would have honored Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard at their May 6 City Council meeting. Brighton was expected to officially recognize the 75th anniversary of the first publication of “Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health” at the May 6 City Council meeting, declaring May 9 as Dianetics Day in Brighton. Brighton’s proclamation, signed by Mayor Greg Mills and Brighton City Clerk Natalie Hoel, noted that L. Ron Hubbard, an American science fiction and pulp author, first published his most well-known book “Dianetics,” on May 19, 1950. The Church of Scientology opened its first of-
ficial location nearly four years later, in California. But Councilor Tom Green moved to strike the proclamation from the council’s agenda at the beginning of Tuesday’s meeting and councilors agreed unanimously. The Dianetics proclamation was one of four proclamations the mayor was scheduled to read at the May 6 meeting. Others included “Kids to Parks Day” on May 17, declaring the week of May 11 as “National Police Week” and declaring the month of May “Historic Preservation Month.” After agreeing to strike the Dianetics proclamation, councilors then moved to postpone the three remaining proclamations from that night’s agenda, but didn’t pick them up later on during the meeting. City Manager Michael Martinez said the
WESTMINSTER INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 10 | CULTURE: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 16
rest of the proclamations were removed due to timing and will be considered true proclamations. The council’s May 6 agenda was long and councilors removed the proclamations budget item to save time, he said. Since the Dianetics proclamation was struck by a unanimous vote of the City Council, May 9 will not be considered Dianetics Day in Brighton. Brighton City Councilors voted to approve proclamations until about five years ago, Martinez said. Now, the mayor simply signs them and announces them at an appropriate meeting. Martinez said he expects councilors to discuss that policy at their next study session meeting, tentatively scheduled for May 13. SEE DIANETICS DAY, P3
Undocumented students in Colorado have gone on to be teachers, nurses and business owners thanks to a program that allows them to pay in-state tuition at public universities. Now the future of that program and ones like it in 23 other states are in doubt after President Donald Trump signed an executive order that seeks to punish states and cities with so-called sanctuary policies. The order, signed April 28, also specifically calls out programs that provide in-state tuition for undocumented students who graduated from high school in that state or who meet other residency requirements. Allowing in-state students who are not citizens to pay less tuition than out-of-state students who are citizens represents discrimination, according to the order, which says that the attorney general, in cooperation with the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, “shall identify and take appropriate action to stop the enforcement of state and local laws, regulations, policies, and practices favoring aliens over any groups of American citizens that are unlawful.” Advocates for immigrant students say that without in-state tuition, many undocumented students will struggle to afford college. They don’t qualify for any federal financial aid and face other barriers to college. “This is absolutely essential for immigrant students,” said Raquel Lane-Arellano, communications manager for the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, which fought to pass Colorado’s in-state tuition law in 2013. “It’s not these students’ fault that our immigration system is so broken. They deserve the opportunity, just like all of their peers, to access higher levels of education.” So far, Colorado universities are not making any immediate changes to their policies. SEE TUITION, P6
FTLUPTONPRESS.COM • A PUBLICATION OF COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA