First Regular Session
Seventy-fifth General Assembly
STATE OF COLORADO
REVISED
LLS NO. R25-0794.01 Jessica Chapman x4636
HJR25-1018
House Committees Senate Committees
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 25-1018
C
ONCERNING RECOGNITION OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF LATINA AND101
L
ATINO VETERANS.102
WHEREAS, A diverse group with shared history and culture that1
identifies as Latina/o, Hispanic, and Chicana/o, among other shared2
identities, including many faiths, orientations, and all gender identities3
has fought in support of the United States and the cause of freedom in4
every American conflict since the American Revolution; and5
WHEREAS, During the Revolutionary War, Colonel Bernardo de6
Galvez, the Spanish governor of the Louisiana territories, and his men7
helped General George Washington and the Continental Army defeat the8
British forces advancing into the then-southwestern U.S. territories; and9
WHEREAS, In the 150 years following the American Revolution,10
SENATE
Final Reading
February 11, 2025
HOUSE
Final Reading
February 7, 2025
HOUSE SPONSORSHIP
Martinez and Barron, Camacho, Carter, Armagost, Bacon, Boesenecker, Bottoms,
Bradfield, Bradley, Brown, Caldwell, Clifford, Duran, Espenoza, Feret, Froelich, Garcia
Sander, Gonzalez R., Hamrick, Hartsook, Jackson, Johnson, Joseph, Keltie, Lieder, Lukens,
Mabrey, Mauro, McCluskie, McCormick, Paschal, Pugliese, Richardson, Ricks, Rydin,
Smith, Soper, Stewart K., Stewart R., Story, Taggart, Titone, Valdez, Velasco, Weinberg,
Winter T., Woodrow, Woog, Bird, Brooks, DeGraaf, English, Garcia, Gilchrist, Lindsay,
Lindstedt, Luck, Phillips, Rutinel, Sirota, Suckla, Willford
SENATE SPONSORSHIP
Rodriguez and Gonzales J., Amabile, Baisley, Ball, Bridges, Bright, Carson, Catlin,
Coleman, Cutter, Danielson, Daugherty, Exum, Hinrichsen, Jaquez Lewis, Jodeh, Kipp,
Kirkmeyer, Kolker, Liston, Lundeen, Marchman, Michaelson Jenet, Pelton B., Pelton R.,
Rich, Roberts, Simpson, Snyder, Sullivan, Weissman, Winter F.
Shading denotes HOUSE amendment. Double underlining denotes SENATE amendment.
Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing law.
Dashes through the words or numbers indicate deletions from existing law. Latina/o service members fought with distinction in support of the United1
States in conflicts including the Spanish-American War and World War2
I. During World War II, Latina/o contributions in the Armed Forces3
increased extraordinarily; and4
WHEREAS, Nearly 500,000 Latina/o Americans, many of them5
women and the children of immigrants, fought for the cause of freedom6
in World War II, among them the 158th Regimental Combat Team,7
nicknamed the "Bushmasters", and Company E of the 141st Infantry8
Regiment, which consisted entirely of Mexican-American soldiers; and9
WHEREAS, In 1948, in the aftermath of World War II, Dr. Hector10
Garcia founded the American GI Forum to ensure educational, medical,11
housing, and other benefits and services for Latina/o veterans. Dr. Garcia12
and the American GI Forum worked diligently to secure equal access to13
benefits, and in 1984, Dr. Garcia was the first Mexican American to14
receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom; and15
WHEREAS, In the Korean War, the Puerto Rican 65th Infantry16
Regiment, also known as "the Borinqueneers", served with distinction and17
valor; for their efforts, they were awarded two Presidential Unit Citations,18
a Meritorious Unit Commendation, and two Republic of Korea19
Presidential Unit Citations. In 2014, the unit was recognized with a20
Congressional Gold Medal; and21
WHEREAS, During the Vietnam War, more than 80,000 Latina/o22
service members served, 22 of whom were awarded the Congressional23
Medal of Honor; Latinas/os have also served the United States in the24
Global War on Terrorism, Gulf Wars, and elsewhere; and25
WHEREAS, In total, 59 Hispanic or Latina/o veterans have been26
awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for service in the United27
States Armed Forces; the medal is the country's highest award for military28
valor; and29
WHEREAS, Today, more than 200,000 Latinas/os are active duty30
members of the Armed Forces, and more than 1.5 million Latina/o31
veterans call the United States, including Colorado, home; now, therefore, 32
Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Seventy-fifth33
General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the Senate concurring herein:34
1018
-2- That we, the members of the General Assembly, recognize and1
commend the efforts and sacrifice of the millions of Latinas/os who have2
served the cause of freedom as part of the Armed Forces of the United3
States.4
Be It Further Resolved, That a copy of this Joint Resolution be5
sent to the American GI Forum of Colorado.6
1018
-3-