Alison Coombs

I am honored to announce the launch of the Joint MENASA & Muslim Caucus. It’s humbling to help create a space that uplifts the heritage of the Middle Eastern, North African, South Asian, and Muslim communities in Colorado. This is just the beginning of working together for justice, equity, and defending our civil rights. Grateful to stand alongside @yaraforco and so many who make this work possible. @menasacaucus #RepresentationMatters

Rep. Mike Weissman and myself, along with all Aurora elected officials, have published an oped in the Denver Post about the increasing challenges our Venezuelan community in Aurora are facing. “When immigrants from Venezuela, or any other nation for that matter, arrive in Colorado, they are confronted with the same challenges other Coloradans have — foremost, the higher cost of living since COVID and the scarcity of affordable housing. Further, certain landlords may neglect their legal obligations to maintain rental premises in a safe and livable condition.” denverpost.com/2024/09/20/don…

@robertk95110513 He was a slumlord for years before constituents reached out to council, constituents contacted us about it well before the date when we're told staff left.

@CoombsForAurora I do not know the landlord or met him. I know and understand there are many slumlords out there. My question is, when did he become a slumlord? Was it when all his employees abandoned ship, because they feared for their life working there?

Council has been briefed repeatedly that no properties have been taken over. The tenants have said the conditions in these apartment buildings are due to criminally negligent management.

@DaniJurinsky We were also briefed that they refused to cooperate with APD on addressing public safety issues, and continue to refuse to cooperate because it comes with the requirement that they maintain their properties.

@CoombsForAurora So, the property manager being beaten and hospitalized, and the maintenance man and cleaning lady having a gun held to them, forced to hand over money and told to never return to work isn't a takeover? There was no staff left. This is all in a public police report.

I think you may have missed some meetings since being on maternity leave. Congratulations on the new baby!🩷💙 I haven't seen you to tell you that in person.

@DaniJurinsky The property manager that apparently had this happen was carrying a shotgun and a pistol on the property well before the date of that police report or this supposed 'takeover,' and was intimidating residents.

You seem to be banking on repeating a lie often enough until it becomes the truth. Promoting tired, racist immigration panic is a dangerous game that is hurting our community and our constituents. People are struggling to find housing & employment due to your misrepresentations.

Constituents have been reaching out to council about this slumlord since early last year, well before it was politically convenient to whip up anti-immigrant panic. I wonder what has changed about your interest in this issue.

A song encouraging you all to vote. @AFelixMedia @WandaLJames @WoodrowForCO @Shontel4Council @AuontaiAnderson @CoombsForAurora @AuroraActivist @samijow

Hey y'all, 14 days left to make sure we elect Bryan, who consistently shows up and represents the interests of working families--in the classroom, on an picket line, and as an advocate who speaks truth to power.

@WoodrowForCO @chrisFnicholson It's not the fact of standing against hostage-taking, it's the justification of extensive civilian casualties in response. But it's late, and this conversation isn't going to get more productive by having it on Twitter. Let's follow up later.

@chrisFnicholson @WoodrowForCO I don't bother to call out people who I don't think are worth trying to have a conversation with. I'm not disregarding Steven, I'm just genuinely surprised by this take.

@CoombsForAurora @WoodrowForCO Steve is one of the most thoughtful, compassionate, considerate people that I have ever met. And I think it’s critical for us to remember that bigger picture when we are having these difficult discussions on which it is very hard to see the other side.

@chrisFnicholson @WoodrowForCO I don't think we're going to have a productive conversation on this hellsite. But I don't see how watching a nation retaliate and kill more than 30x the people they originally lost can continue to garner support without at least *some* callousness toward those being killed.

@CoombsForAurora @WoodrowForCO I know it’s massively more complicated than that, and I’ll grant that the scale of death in the conflict is heartbreaking. But there’s a reason why many progressives see this one very differently from so many other progressives. And it’s not callousness.

@chrisFnicholson @WoodrowForCO We're not going to get anywhere on this point, but you cannot say Hamas is "primarily responsible" for Israeli troops repeatedly bombing and invading the very places they designate as "safe" for civilians, nor for many other aspects of this slaughter that won't fit in one tweet.

@CoombsForAurora @WoodrowForCO Maybe I’m cynical, but I think you’d see Democratic politicians giving the rescuers hugs. And of course you’re right. But it is Hamas that is primarily responsible, and I feel often in this discourse they are infantilized.

@chrisFnicholson @WoodrowForCO If the US killed hundreds of civilians in the operation to recover 4 hostages, people would rightly call that out. I'm truly floored by the general callousness toward innocent Palestinians. We can't be sympathetic only to the 1,200 Israelis and ignore the 36,000+ Palestinians.

@CoombsForAurora @WoodrowForCO The point is to get to a place where with the support of the international community. But my question was essentially: would you really expect the US not to go in if we had a way to get four hostages back? I don’t think they acted any differently than Biden or Obama would.

@chrisFnicholson @WoodrowForCO No, and that's why tge Israeli government cane out saying they wouldn't accept it unless they were allowed to remain in Gaza to "eliminate Hamas"

@CoombsForAurora @WoodrowForCO Does the Biden deal call for hostilities to resume?

@chrisFnicholson @WoodrowForCO That would also typically include a phased release of hostages, at the end of which the ceasefire would be sustained, not a phased release of hostages after which hostilities would resume. Especially when "hostilities" are targeting civilian areas and mostly killing civilians.

@CoombsForAurora @WoodrowForCO Israel wants a phased withdrawal to ensure that Hamas does not simply return to the status quo ante. Hamas wants a total withdrawal and an end to hostilities with no changes in the status quo. And a phased end to hostilities is extremely common.

@chrisFnicholson @WoodrowForCO Israel has turned down every ceasefire deal. The most recent one because, even after recovering every hostage, they want to be guaranteed international support for continuing to invade Gaza. Honest question, who in their right mind would accept those terms?

@CoombsForAurora @WoodrowForCO Genuine question: what should they have done? Hamas has turned down every ceasefire deal.