To: Governor Polis, Attorney General Phil Weiser, Senator Pelton
STOP THE TERROR AGAINST BLACK FARMERS IN COLORADO — INVESTIGATE EL PASO COUNTY SHERIFF NOW
End the Domestic Terrorism against Farmers by the El Paso County Sheriff Office in Colorado. For years, Black and veteran farmers CW and Nicole Mallery, founders of Freedom Acres Ranch in Yoder, Colorado, have been sounding the alarm — and no one in power has listened.
Their story is not new.
Their cries for help are not new.
But now, the world is finally seeing what they have endured.
Their cries for help are not new.
But now, the world is finally seeing what they have endured.
Their experiences have been documented, investigated, and brought to national attention by respected journalists.
In 2023, award-winning scholar and journalist Kaia Shivers published a detailed exposé titled “Get Out: Black Colorado Ranchers Face Domestic Terrorism,” documenting the racialized harassment, intimidation, and systemic failures targeting the Mallerys and other Black farmers in El Paso County.
Read the article here:
https://www.arkrepublic.com/2023/01/16/get-out-black-colorado-ranchers-face-domestic-terrorism/
In 2023, award-winning scholar and journalist Kaia Shivers published a detailed exposé titled “Get Out: Black Colorado Ranchers Face Domestic Terrorism,” documenting the racialized harassment, intimidation, and systemic failures targeting the Mallerys and other Black farmers in El Paso County.
Read the article here:
https://www.arkrepublic.com/2023/01/16/get-out-black-colorado-ranchers-face-domestic-terrorism/
Now, their story has reached an even wider audience.
It is featured prominently in Jordan Peele’s docuseries High Horse: The Black Cowboy on Peacock — a national spotlight revealing the abuse, retaliation, and danger CW and Nicole continue to face simply for farming their own land and feeding their community.
It is featured prominently in Jordan Peele’s docuseries High Horse: The Black Cowboy on Peacock — a national spotlight revealing the abuse, retaliation, and danger CW and Nicole continue to face simply for farming their own land and feeding their community.
What the Mallerys are enduring — and what other Black farmers in El Paso County have reported — is not a misunderstanding.
It is a systemic, deliberate, and escalating pattern of abuse of power, carried out under the authority of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
It is a systemic, deliberate, and escalating pattern of abuse of power, carried out under the authority of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
CW and Nicole Mallery are community builders.
They founded Freedom Acres Ranch to feed families, teach youth, build food access, and heal land.
And instead of being supported, they have been targeted, criminalized, and abandoned by the very systems meant to protect them.
They founded Freedom Acres Ranch to feed families, teach youth, build food access, and heal land.
And instead of being supported, they have been targeted, criminalized, and abandoned by the very systems meant to protect them.
This must end.
And it must end now.
What Farmers Have Reported — A Clear Pattern of AbuseAnd it must end now.
CW and Nicole Mallery — and other farmers across Colorado — have documented years of:
- Harassment and intimidation on their own land
- False arrests used to terrorize and silence them
- Restraining orders ignored or unenforced
- Dogs poisoned, stolen, or run over with no investigation
- Cows stolen, run over, or deliberately harmed
- Zero accountability for individuals repeatedly suspected of trespassing or harming animals
- Selective enforcement and racial targeting that puts Black farmers at grave risk
- A climate where victims are criminalized and aggressors are protected
This is not law enforcement.
This is not community safety.
This is racism, retaliation, and a violation of civil rights.
This is not community safety.
This is racism, retaliation, and a violation of civil rights.
Why is this important?
Why This Matters — to Colorado and the Nation
CW and Nicole Mallery of Freedom Acres Ranch are not just farmers.
They are not just landowners.
They are not just another rural family trying to survive against the odds.
They are not just landowners.
They are not just another rural family trying to survive against the odds.
CW and Nicole are United States Marine Corps veterans, community advocates, youth mentors, agricultural educators, food-access leaders, and land stewards who have dedicated their lives to feeding families across Colorado — from Yoder to Denver to Colorado Springs. They rebuilt their lives after losing everything in a hurricane, moved across the country, and planted roots in Colorado with nothing but hard work, resilience, and a belief that Farmers Save Lives.
They stepped onto their land with a mission:
To grow food.
To teach youth.
To heal soil.
To create opportunity.
To serve their community.
To grow food.
To teach youth.
To heal soil.
To create opportunity.
To serve their community.
And instead of honor or protection, they have faced years of reported harassment, intimidation, racial targeting, and violence.
When farmers like the Mallerys — veterans, community builders, and providers — are targeted, the foundation of our food system is threatened.
When their animals are harmed and their reports go unanswered, justice is not just delayed — it is denied.
When restraining orders go unenforced and dangers go unchecked, public safety collapses.
When those sworn to protect the community instead become the focus of civil rights concerns and allegations of misconduct, every resident becomes vulnerable.
When their animals are harmed and their reports go unanswered, justice is not just delayed — it is denied.
When restraining orders go unenforced and dangers go unchecked, public safety collapses.
When those sworn to protect the community instead become the focus of civil rights concerns and allegations of misconduct, every resident becomes vulnerable.
What CW and Nicole are enduring is happening on American soil — on land they legally own, land they farm, land they steward, land they sacrificed to build.
And the nation has now seen it.
Their story has been documented in national press, including the major exposé “Get Out: Black Colorado Ranchers Face Domestic Terrorism” by award-winning journalist Kaia Shivers.
And their fight is now being broadcast to millions through Jordan Peele’s docuseries High Horse: The Black Cowboy, exposing to the world what has been happening behind closed doors in El Paso County.
And their fight is now being broadcast to millions through Jordan Peele’s docuseries High Horse: The Black Cowboy, exposing to the world what has been happening behind closed doors in El Paso County.
If this can happen to Black farmers in Colorado —
Farmers who are veterans, who are documented, who have national visibility, who feed the state and teach its children —
then it can happen to any Black farmer, anywhere in America.
Farmers who are veterans, who are documented, who have national visibility, who feed the state and teach its children —
then it can happen to any Black farmer, anywhere in America.
If this can happen in broad daylight —
with evidence, witnesses, media coverage, and now a major docuseries —
it raises the alarming truth:
What happens to Black landowners when no cameras are rolling?
with evidence, witnesses, media coverage, and now a major docuseries —
it raises the alarming truth:
What happens to Black landowners when no cameras are rolling?
This is why we must act.
Because this is not just a Colorado issue.
This is an agricultural issue.
A land issue.
A racial justice issue.
A civil rights issue.
A national issue.
Because this is not just a Colorado issue.
This is an agricultural issue.
A land issue.
A racial justice issue.
A civil rights issue.
A national issue.
Protecting CW and Nicole Mallery is not just about safeguarding two farmers — it is about defending the future of Black land ownership, Black food sovereignty, and Black agricultural legacy in America.
Silence is not an option.
Inaction is not neutrality.
This is our moment to stand up.
What We Are DemandingInaction is not neutrality.
This is our moment to stand up.
We call for immediate, sweeping action:
1. State and Federal Oversight: A full, independent investigation into the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
2. Thorough Investigation Into All Harmed or Stolen Animals: Dogs. Cows. Livestock. Working animals.
Every case deserves justice.
Every case deserves justice.
3. Protection for CW & Nicole Mallery and All Farmers Facing Threats: Farmers should not fear violence, retaliation, or the sheriff’s department.
4. Enforcement of Restraining Orders: Violators must be held accountable — not protected.
5. Review of Racial Bias and Discriminatory Policing Practices: Black farmers deserve equal protection under the law.
6. Independent Civilian Oversight: The sheriff’s office cannot investigate itself.
Farmers Deserve Safety. Farmers Deserve Peace. Farmers Deserve Justice.CW and Nicole’s animals — their dogs, cows, and livestock who protect their ranch — deserve to live safely, without being poisoned, stolen, or run over with impunity.
This is not just about agriculture.
This is about civil rights, land rights, and basic human rights.
We Need Your VoiceThis is about civil rights, land rights, and basic human rights.
Your signature is not just a name.
It is a stand against abuse.
A stand against racism.
A stand for justice.
A stand for CW & Nicole Mallery, Freedom Acres Ranch, their animals, and their right to farm and live in peace.
It is a stand against abuse.
A stand against racism.
A stand for justice.
A stand for CW & Nicole Mallery, Freedom Acres Ranch, their animals, and their right to farm and live in peace.
Silence empowers oppression.
Community action stops it.
Community action stops it.
Sign today.
Share widely.
Help bring national attention and federal accountability to a crisis that has gone unchecked for far too long.
Share widely.
Help bring national attention and federal accountability to a crisis that has gone unchecked for far too long.
Protect CW & Nicole Mallery. Protect Freedom Acres Ranch. Protect Black farmers. Protect the animals who protect them. Protect the land that sustains us all.