NPR's Morning Edition talks to PCJF's Mara Verheyden-Hilliard about the clearing of peaceful protesters from Lafayette Park, and how the police violated previous agreements imposed upon them after their previous misconduct at Pershing Park in 2002. Read more

Washington Post editorial "A victory for free speech on the Mall" calls the total withdrawal of proposed anti-protest regulations: "a full retreat by the Trump administration and, more important, a victory for the First Amendment." "Their plan to suppress protest,” said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard of the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund, “was met with the very force it was trying to suppress."

The White House is now—via the National Park Service—seeking to squelch public protest in Washington, DC, by, yes, charging for it.

Washington Post columnist Petula Dvorak writes about the grave implications of the newly proposed regulations

Courthouse News Service: Trump Planning Tough New Rules for Protests Near White House. “Nearly all are registering outrage and opposition to this radical rollback of free speech rights. We view this as a full scale attack on constitutional rights, that’s why we’ve launched a campaign to defend them.” — Carl Messineo, PCJF Legal Director Read more

The Hill: Trump administration proposes tough rules on protests. “There’s never been such a large effort at rewriting these regulations. I don’t think there can be any question that these revisions will have the intent and certainly the effect of stifling the ability of the public to protest.” — Mara Verheyden-Hilliard Read more

WJLA (DC): New restrictions proposed for protests near the White House and National Mall “If you think about the 1963 March on Washington at the Lincoln Memorial, if these rules had been in place then, the government would have been able to assess massive costs on the organizers and stopped them from being able to have that important moment. All you have to do is think about what our society would be like if that speech had been stifled.” — Mara Verheyden-Hilliard Read more

The American Prospect asks: Will the Next Women’s March Be Taxed? Read more

Spreading the Word on the Save Free Speech Campaign — Mara Verheyden-Hilliard speaks to Pacifica's WPFW

For the first time, the U.S. government wants demonstrators to pay to use our parks, sidewalks and streets to engage in free speech in the nation’s capital. This is a bold effort by the Trump administration to burden and restrict access to public spaces for First Amendment activities in Washington. If enacted, it would fundamentally alter participatory democracy in America. Read more