FOIAs Require Disclosure of Communications and Other Information Related to Closure and Subsequent Recission
The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund (PCJF) today filed Freedom of Information Act requests (FOIA) demanding the disclosure of records from the Trump Administration’s National Park Service, its Department of the Interior, the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department and the D.C. Mayor’s Office regarding the outrageous decision to close Dupont Circle, a location historically linked to the LGBTQ+ community, during WorldPride events taking place June 5–8 2025. The PCJF is seeking information and communications underlying the closure determination and the about-face recission issued after public outcry.
The National Park Service cited recent Executive Orders from President Trump when defending its unprecedented banning of the public from and closure of Dupont Circle during Pride events.
“The threatened removal of public space from the public’s use, notably in relation to LGBTQ+ Pride and in apparent service to Trump’s agenda, is a dangerous step and outside the legitimate authority of the Park Service,” stated Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, constitutional rights attorney and Executive Director of the PCJF. “The public land belongs to the people and neither the White House, the MPD nor the Park Service has the right to arbitrarily decide that the public shall be excluded from their land, and it is particularly reprehensible to seek to exclude the LGBTQ+ community from an iconic area during Pride.”
“The LGBTQ+ community and general public deserve to know how and why the decision to shut Pride out of Dupont Circle was made, and how and why that decision was reversed,” said Sarah Taitz, PCJF staff attorney. “We are demanding answers and look forward to sharing what we learn.”