Key Spots of D.C. Will Be Blocked From Protestors and Demonstrators Weeks Before, During, After Inauguration

‘Massive Omnibus Blocking Permit’ Is an “Illegal Abridgment of First Amendment Rights’ Says Civil Rights Attorney

Plans for several large protests in Washington, D.C. the weeks before, during, and after the inauguration will have to be canceled or moved out of historically important parts of the city. The Presidential Inauguration Committee which Donald Trump now controls, has effectively arranged to ban protests and large gatherings in key and historically important demonstration areas in the nation’s capital.

In a reportedly unprecedented move, the Presidential Inauguration Committee, via the National Park Service, last year, before Trump was the nominee, filed for and received permits shutting down areas like the National Mall, which is the site of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech and the culmination of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Also closed off will be surrounding areas of Pennsylvania Avenue, the Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial.

It’s unclear why the Presidential Inauguration Committee took such extraordinary steps, and why so early, but since the Committee is now run by Donald Trump’s appointees, they have the power to roll back what are effectively bans on First Amendment free speech. 

The National Park Service “filed a ‘massive omnibus blocking permit’ for many of Washington DC’s most famous political locations,” The Guardian reports, “for days and weeks before and after the inauguration on 20 January,” according to Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, a constitutional rights litigator and the executive director of the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund.

Verheyden-Hilliard calls the move “extremely unique,” and an “illegal abridgment of first amendment rights,” telling The Guardian, “What they’ve done is take all of these spaces out of action.” She made her remarks during a press conference by the ANSWER [Act Now to Stop War and End Racism] Coalition.

A National Parks Service spokesman says these key spots are “construction zones, effectively” now.

“Inauguration bleachers and viewing stands started being erected on 1 November and it will take until 1 March to completely clear the major public spaces from all of the inauguration works, said Mike Litterst, spokesman for the NPS,” The Guardian reports.

“About 20 groups,” The Washington Post reports, “including the Women’s March on Washington, People’s Action and the ANSWER Coalition — have applied to demonstrate on federal property around the Jan. 20 event.”

But the National Park Service, which handles the permitting, said it does not grant any requests until the Presidential Inaugural Committee, which plans the parade and other events to usher in a new president, maps out where it wants to hold inauguration-related activities.

Already affected, the Women’s March on Washington scheduled for the Lincoln Memorial the day after the inauguration, and a protest organized by ANSWER, scheduled for Inauguration Day at Freedom Plaza. 138,000 people have signed up to attend the Women’s March.

Some responses via Twitter: