A volunteer group in Helena is asking the city to change its event-permitting requirements, arguing that they infringe on its constitutional rights.
Indivisible Helena is one of the local chapters of Indivisible National, a nationwide coalition focused on democracy and stopping the “rise of authoritarianism.” Indivisible Helena has also helped organize the local “No Kings” rallies, but members say they encountered challenges when they approached the city to host the gathering.
The city of Helena requires event organizers to obtain insurance for gatherings and, if those gatherings are anticipated to have more than 1,000 people, to submit a permit application at least 90 days in advance. Those mandates have created barriers for Indivisible Helena when the group was eyeing Memorial Park for a rally last October, which members believe violates their rights to free speech and assembly.
“We contacted nearly 20 insurance companies … and none of them would even respond or were willing to even consider issuing coverage to us,” Indivisible Helena volunteer Claudia Clifford told Montana Free Press. “ So essentially we were caught in a situation where we can’t use the city’s public property.”
Clifford added that the “No Kings” protests have consistently attracted more than 1,000 participants, and since the rallies coincide with a national movement, local chapters are given less than 60 days’ notice of the next rally.
To address its concerns, Indivisible Helena sent the city commission a letter earlier this month requesting that they amend the city code to include an insurance exemption for events that are “an exercise of political or religious rights.” The requested exemption was based on the city of Missoula’s event guidelines.
The letter goes on to say that the application can’t be denied if the event is “in response to political and public controversies.”
Helena attorney David K.W. Wilson Jr. also submitted a letter to the city on the issue, supporting the organization’s stance on permitting requirements.
“It is my opinion that the City of Helena acted to unconstitutionally restrain protected political assembly and speech when it imposed an insurmountable barrier to the request of Indivisible Helena to hold a rally at a particular public venue,” Wilson’s letter stated.
During a meeting April 6, Commissioner Melinda Reed inquired about how the city would respond. Mayor Emily Dean said that both she and the city attorney met with group members about their letter before the meeting and that the attorney is reviewing the recommendations. Helena City Manager Alana Lake told MTFP Monday that the city attorney will give a brief update during a meeting this Wednesday.
Indivisible Helena’s letter to the city comes about a month after group organizers faced a similar issue at the state-level when the Gianforte administration changed event permitting guidelines at the Montana Capitol Complex to exclude weekends.
That change was made only a few weeks before the recent “No Kings” rally, usually held on Saturdays at the Capitol. Organizers argued that the state infringed on their First Amendment rights, and after MTFP and other media reported about the change, state officials reversed the weekend prohibition.
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