Council’s Chacon hijacks Memorial Day to peddle politics

Commerce City rightly prides itself on a Memorial Day parade that is second to none. It’s the largest in the state and this year drew at least 8,000 people, according to The Denver Gazette:

Hundreds of parade entries from the military, police, law enforcement, fire, civic organizations, car clubs, and more made their way along a mile-and-a-half route to the delight of young and old alike. Many donned military caps and waved American flags.

Our mayor weighed in, as well, and was quoted by The Gazette, setting the tone:

“It’s important that we take time to truly remember and honor our fallen service members for their sacrifice on Memorial Day," said Commerce City Mayor Steve Douglas. “Their bravery and determination serve as profound inspiration to remind us to uphold the values they so gladly defended.”

So, it was surprising, even startling — and, for some, probably infuriating —to see Ward III council member Renée M. Chacon disrupt the occasion with an overt display of her controversial politics. You could say it was downright divisive considering it was all about the war currently raging in the Middle East.

As depicted in photos posted to her Facebook page, Chacon and her family members donned T-shirts bearing anti-Israeli slogans — and boarded a city-sponsored float in the parade. “END THE OCCUPATION,” was printed in big letters on Chacon’s shirt. “FREE PALESTINE,” read another family member’s shirt while yet another shirt effectively accused Israel of “genocide.”

Chacon’s support for a Palestinian state that would erase and replace the Jewish state of Israel — a cause taken up by campus radicals currently staging demonstrations across the country — is her business. It probably won’t win her any support in the local Jewish community. Neither will the fact she didn’t include a slogan demanding the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas be brought to justice for its surprise attack on Israel last October and its mass-murder of Israeli civilians, including children.

But to drag those extreme and divisive views into the middle a cherished event like the Memorial Day parade — which honors fallen Americans and is supposed to unite the community — points to a politician who is way out of touch.

Chacon’s activist politics is of course an open secret. She is an outspoken critic of Commerce City’s Suncor refinery and an advocate of “climate justice.” The six-year resident of Commerce City, who was appointed to her seat and then elected to a two-year term last fall — is director and cofounder of a group called Womxn from the Mountain. It has crusaded against the refinery and describes itself on its website as, an “Inclusive group open to women of all colors and backgrounds, including those that identify as women and the feminine identity.”

Time will tell if that agenda fits most of her constituents, or alienates them. But it’s probably a safe bet most Commerce City citizens don’t want their beloved Memorial Day tradition turned into a political dog-and-pony show.