Cyclists gathered in City Park for a memorial ride honoring Alex Pretti, part of coordinated events held across Colorado and nationwide.
DENVER — Hundreds of cyclists gathered in Denver on Saturday for a “We Ride in Unity” memorial ride honoring Alex Pretti, who was shot and killed by federal immigration enforcement agents last weekend in Minneapolis.
Many riders felt a connection to Pretti after learning he was both a cyclist and a health care worker. Similar events took place across Colorado and in cities around the country, with organizers describing them as both tributes and demonstrations.
In Denver, riders met at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in City Park around midday before setting off on a roughly seven-mile route through the city.
The ride passed through Five Points and RiNo, moved by Union Station and the 16th Street Mall, continued past the Denver City and County Building, paused at the Colorado State Capitol and returned to City Park. Volunteer organizers, known among cyclists as “blockers” and “corkers,” stopped traffic at intersections to allow the group to move together.
Before the ride began one cyclist, Judy Toms, walked through the crowd handing out small stickers printed with Pretti’s face.
“When Alex was shot, and it came out that he was not only a member of the bicycling community, but a member of the medical community, I think both of those groups really saw themselves,” said Toms. “He was one of us.”
Toms said the stickers gave participants a way to show they had taken part and to continue expressing support beyond the event.
For several riders, the event was about more than remembrance; it was a rare chance to join others in solidarity and publicly express concern over how Pretti was killed.
“To just come out and say enough is enough… It’s the kind of thing, I thought was completely an impossibility in our country that our own government would be shooting people in our streets who were trying to stand up for the rights of others,” said Toms.
She also framed the moment as one she believes could have implications beyond a single city.
“Taking advantage of the fact that it’s still relatively safe for us to do this,” she said. “Because I think it’s predictable that the same kinds of things happening in other cities across the US will eventually happen in Denver if we don’t stand up and stop it now.”
Similar rides were held in other Colorado communities, including Fort Collins, Boulder, Golden, Grand Junction, Basalt, Gunnison, Durango, Salida, Trinidad and Colorado Springs.