Editing Loveland, Colorado (section)

===Sundown Town===
Loveland was known as a [[Sundown town|"sundown town."]] "Sundown towns" were racially segregated communities that excluded non-white travelers from remaining in their borders after the sun set. "The primary purpose of these towns was to enforce racial purity and to create an environment where white residents could live without any interaction with or proximity to Black individuals. These towns used intimidation, threats, and sometimes violence to enforce their unwritten rules that people of color should leave Town before Sundown."<ref name="nu">{{cite web |title=Sunset UnLimited: The Enduring Racist Legacy of America’s Sundown Towns |url=https://www.nuorigins.com/sunset-unlimited-the-enduring-racist-legacy-of-americas-sundown-towns/ |website=Nu Origins |access-date=16 May 2025}}</ref>

Before 1960, signs welcoming travelers to Loveland read, "“Welcome to Loveland – Elev. 5000 – Nationally Famous Sweetheart Town – Won’t You Stay Awhile – Industrial Opportunities – Diversified Agriculture.” A smaller handmade sign read, “We observe the [[Jim Crow laws|Jim Crow Laws]] here.”"<ref name="LRH">{{cite news |last1=Lowe |first1=Olivia |title=Loveland wasn’t immune to nation’s divided past |url=https://www.reporterherald.com/2016/07/02/loveland-wasnt-immune-to-nations-divided-past/ |publisher=Loveland Reporter-Herald |date=July 2, 2016}}</ref> According to the 2020 census, the Black population of Loveland makes up less than 1%, and the Hispanic population is 12%.<ref name="LRH" /> In the early 1900s, neighborhoods and Homeowner Associations prevented people of color from purchasing homes.<ref name="denver7">{{cite news |last1=Smith |first1=Micah |title=Sundown towns: Uncovering Colorado's dark past, dangers for Black people staying out after sunset |url=https://www.denver7.com/news/local-news/sundown-towns-uncovering-colorados-dark-past-dangers-for-black-people-staying-out-after-sunset |agency=Denver 7 |date=February 26, 2021}}</ref>

Loveland has the largest percentage of residents in Colorado who solely identify as white. The city council began discussing racism and equity in 2019, but "[a]fter nearly two years and at least six meetings that prominently featured the issue, almost no action has been taken by city councilors."<ref name="kunc4">{{cite news |last1=Rayes |first1=Adam |title=Loveland, Colorado Splinters Over Racist Sundown Town Past And Increasingly Diverse Future |url=https://www.kunc.org/2021-09-13/loveland-colorado-splinters-over-racist-sundown-town-past-and-increasingly-diverse-future |agency=KUNC |date=September 13, 2021}}</ref> One resident recalled, "A visiting team didn’t spend the night in the city after the game because they had Black players."<ref name="kunc3">{{cite news |last1=Rayes |first1=Adam |title='We Were Here First': Native American, Mexican Residents Reflect On Life In Loveland, A Former Sundown Town |url=https://www.kunc.org/culture-identity/2021-09-30/we-were-here-first-native-american-mexican-residents-reflect-on-life-in-loveland-a-former-sundown-town |date=September 30, 2021}}</ref> All non-white residents were treated with disrespect, not just Black people. A Mexican and Native-American resident whose family migrated to the area stated, "We were recruited for cheap labor and allowed to live here and still treated pretty poorly. That was still more of a privilege than what Black people dealt with … Both are wrong, is what it comes down to."<ref name="kunc3" />