From an ACLU of Rhode Island press release in SteveAhlquist.news
In an important preliminary victory for First
Amendment rights and the role of the Capitol building as a
quintessential forum for free speech activity, state officials have agreed to
keep most of the first floor and rotunda at the Rhode Island State
House open for use by the public, including those engaged in peaceful
protest, immediately before, and during, Governor Daniel McKee’s
upcoming annual “State of the State” address scheduled for January 13,
2026, at 7 pm. The decision to keep the rotunda open was in response to a
lawsuit filed earlier this year by attorneys for the ACLU of RI on
behalf of activists who were intentionally denied access to the rotunda for a
rally and threatened with arrest before last January’s annual gubernatorial
address.
“On January 13, 2026, at 6 pm, the People’s State of the State will be held in the Rotunda,” said Harrison Tuttle in response.
In January 2025, a “People’s State of the State” rally to raise awareness about economic disparity in Rhode Island was planned by local groups, including the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project (RIHAP) and the now-dissolved R.I. Black Lives Matter PAC led by Harrison Tuttle.
The rally
was supposed to take place in the rotunda an hour before the Governor’s State
of the State address to legislators in the House of Representatives chamber.
But upon arriving at the State House, Tuttle and others were advised that the
Governor’s office had instructed State and Capitol Police to prevent them from
accessing the rotunda and the upper floors of the State House.
“The Rhode Island State House Rotunda, situated just a
few hundred feet below the Independent Man, is perhaps the most important free
speech zone in our state,” said Eric Hirsch, executive director of
RIHAP. “The Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project and other groups that work
to prioritize the welfare of poor and unhoused individuals and families were
denied their First Amendment rights before last year’s State of the State address.
We are happy to see that this year’s People’s State of the State rally will be
held in its rightful location.”
The rotunda is a well-known public space regularly used for
protests and demonstrations, and it has traditionally been open to the public
before and during the annual State of the State address. On that day, however,
the entrance to the rotunda was blocked off by Capitol and State Police with a
sign indicating that it had been reserved by the Governor’s office from 4:30 to
10 pm. The ACLU lawsuit argued that the Governor’s reservation of the space and
the Capitol, and the Capitol and State Police’s actions, were undertaken to
stifle protesters’ exercise of their First Amendment rights to freedom of
speech and freedom of assembly.
“Protection of the public’s right to protest the actions
of the government is vital to our society as it is one of the bedrock pillars
of democracy,” said ACLU of RI cooperating attorney Sonja Deyoe. “I
am pleased that we have received this interim relief, which will allow our
clients, and members of the public in general, to exercise that very important
right.”
Unable to hold their rally in the rotunda, police shunted
the protesters to the “Bell Room,” a recessed area in the back of the
State House on the first floor, located away from the building’s main entrance
and elevators, and in a less visible and less accessible location than the
rotunda.
“We are pleased to announce that the Governor and lawyers
for the state have recognized their obligation to ensure that last year’s
wholesale interference with First Amendment rights of members of the public to
assemble and voice their political and social views with respect to the
government’s response to the housing crisis not be repeated,” said ACLU of RI
cooperating attorney Lynette Labinger.
RIHAP and Tuttle are organizing a similar rally before the
Governor’s 2026 State of the State address. In a letter sent yesterday to ACLU
of RI cooperating attorneys Lynette Labinger and Sonja
Deyoe, who had filed the federal lawsuit seeking to prohibit the Governor
and others from again restricting the right of the people to peacefully gather
in the State House rotunda, the Rhode Island Attorney General’s
office has provided detailed information about the access that the public will
have to the State House on the day of the Governor’s address this month. Under
the plan, a small area of the rotunda leading up to the House chamber on the
second floor will be cordoned off to allow guests to reach that floor
unimpeded, and most of the second floor will be closed to the public for
security. Still, protesters will otherwise have access to most of the first
floor and rotunda steps for their planned rally. This interim action by the
state averts the need for the ACLU attorneys to seek a preliminary injunction
before the upcoming event. However, the lawsuit will continue to pursue a
lasting resolution that ensures public access to the rotunda.
“For more than 50 years, the State House rotunda has
served as an indispensable space for the exercise of First Amendment rights,”
said ACLU of RI executive director Steven Brown. “We look forward
to seeing it once again serve that crucial function on the day of this annual
event.”
A copy of the letter outlining the state’s agreement, along with other documents in the lawsuit, is available here.
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