An email response from Colorado Democratic Representative Shannon Bird to constituents who call for her to publicly support a ceasefire and put an end to the ongoing genocide in Gaza:

"thank you for taking the time to contact me and share your opinion regarding the war between Hamas and Israel.

Hamas is an internationally recognized terrorist group that documented its own slaughter of over 1,200 civilians on October 7. We also know that Hamas took over 200 individuals as hostages on that day. Israel has, just as any other country would have during similar terrible circumstances, the right to defend its people, to neutralize the continuing threat that Hamas poses, to hold the perpetrators of the violence on October 7th accountable and to bring all of the hostages home.

I support the Biden Administration's efforts to ensure that Israel does all that it can to avoid harming innocent Palestinians as it pursues its objectives against Hamas.

Thank you again for contacting me.

Kind regards, Shannon Bird"