Judge Won’t Reinstate Aurora Pride Parade Permit Amid Security Staffing Woes – NBC Chicago
A judge on Thursday refused to reinstate a permit for the Aurora Pride Parade after officials said organizers did not secure the needed law enforcement officers required for the event.
Still, organizers said the parade is not off just yet.
The special event permit for the third annual Aurora Pride Parade was revoked after the Aurora Police Department earlier this week said it could not supply enough sworn officers to provide Parade security. Organizers appealed the decision, saying in a statement Wednesday, “Our position has been misrepresented, and we’re making every effort to keep the parade as scheduled.
“It is unacceptable that Aurora City officials have denied a permit for the upcoming Pride Parade,” the ACLU of Illinois, which represents Aurora Pride, said in a statement following the court hearing Thursday. “The Parade has been a family friendly event, aimed at welcoming all members of the Aurora community for a celebration of diversity and inclusion. Rather than embrace this event – as thousands of members of the community have done over the past few years – City officials have created a faux controversy and refuse to provide adequate security so that everyone has the opportunity to celebrate safely.”
The ACLU called the permit issue “not constitutional” and said it plans to take its case to federal court in hopes a judge will “order Aurora to meets it obligation to its residents.”
“The intent of the federal lawsuit is to reverse the action of both the city and the appeals process by attacking that on first amendment grounds,” Aurora Pride President Gwyn Ciesla told NBC 5. “It’s possible there could be an injunction in place to reverse that decision.”
The lead up to the parade has been at the center of controversy, as organizers and the Aurora Police Department continued to spar over what law enforcement representation would look like at the event.
Last month, Aurora Pride Parade organizers asked that law enforcement officers “participate without service weapons (our rules forbid all weapons), out of uniform, and without the presence of any official vehicles.”
Organizers of the parade said they had made the uniform and weapon…
