We are asking for your support to defend protesters' rights at the Inauguration of Donald Trump.
Whether you are coming to protest — or want to ensure the rights of others who are coming — every contribution that you can make goes to defending the First Amendment rights of the people to assemble and protest in Washington, D.C., and demonstrate the opposition to Donald Trump's threatened rollback of rights and destruction of the environment.
We need your help now. Tens of thousands of protesters are coming to Washington, D.C., in the coming days. The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund has been working around the clock providing support to demonstrators and defending the fundamental constitutional right to speak out in the days before, during and after the Inauguration.
The PCJF's constitutional rights litigation in Washington D.C. against local and federal law enforcement over police handling of demonstrations has resulted in major reform to the laws governing police response to protests in the District of Columbia.
The PCJF is providing representation to demonstrators at the inauguration and will be acting also in its watchdog capacity, monitoring the two days of events on the ground to ensure compliance with the police reform laws that we worked to secure. In addition to the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, the U.S. Park Police, the Capitol Police and other agencies usually assigned to demonstrations, there will be 5,000 national guard troops and 3,000 officers from outside agencies descending on Washington, D.C., for the inauguration. Please help support these efforts to defend the First Amendment.
Know Your Rights
New: We have made available and posted information for demonstrators — Know Your Rights: Restrictions on Police Misconduct During Demonstrations in Washington, D.C. — which identifies key areas of legal reform that now govern the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department's handling of demonstrations.
Permits
The PCJF has been waging the legal fight for the right of demonstrators to receive permits for protest activity and has prevailed in the battle to secure the Ellipse and other spaces in Washington, D.C., so that they are available for mass assembly gatherings and protest on January 20th and January 21st.
Among other sites, the National Park Service has released the Ellipse next to White House on January 21st for permitted assembly, made available to the Women's March for closing activities next to the Trump White House.
The ANSWER Coalition has been issued the January 20th Inauguration Day Permit to hold its Inaugurate the Resistance rally with stage and sound directly alongside Trump's Inaugural Parade route at the Navy Memorial between 7th and 9th street on Pennsylvania Avenue. ANSWER will set up a 28-foot-long stage and have a sound system and be able to maintain a protest rally going throughout the day featuring nationally known leaders, grassroots activists and musicians.
We know that the days, months and years ahead will be challenging. But we also know that working together we can ensure that the voices of the people are able to become the political force that refuses to back down in the face of repression and changes society for the better.
Thank you for your support in defense of the right to dissent at Trump's Inauguration.
