After a string of controversial event reservations earlier this year, Fort Worth leaders have rolled out a new policy regulating the types of events residents and private organizations may host at city-owned facilities.
The new policy overturns the city’s previous ban on discriminatory events held on city property. Moving forward, the city “may not adopt regulations pertaining to a speaker’s viewpoint or the content of the event,” Assistant City Manager Jesica McEachern wrote in a Sept. 23 email to City Council members obtained by the Report.
The city has classified community center and library meeting rooms as “designated public forums,” barring them from content-based restrictions, according to the email. With the new designation, regulations on renting the spaces will be limited to an event’s time, place and manner.
“Allowing all viewpoints to speak where they are legally allowed to speak is not the same as the city supporting the viewpoint — the city is supporting the First Amendment,” McEachern, who oversees the park and recreation department, wrote in the email.
McEachern’s email included a note from the city’s attorney’s office, which stated that the government can’t constrain free speech, and “hate speech is free speech.”
A Sept. 23 statement posted to the city’s website did not detail changes to the facility rental policy, but said the review “reaffirms a commitment to free speech while preserving a welcoming environment.” City staff will begin accepting facility rental applications for use of community centers and libraries Oct. 1 after pausing the process this summer, according to the statement.
In a written statement to the Report, Mayor Mattie Parker said she is a “staunch supporter” of the First Amendment who believes it’s “always best to err on the side of constitutional rights.”
“The decision made by city management was driven by a commitment to uphold constitutional rights, and I support their decision,” Parker said. “The safety, security and welcoming nature of our community spaces are always paramount, and I have confidence that city management and the city attorney’s office have carefully balanced these priorities while respecting the First Amendment.”
The Report contacted all council members for their thoughts on the new policy. Council member Gyna Bivens declined to comment, saying she had not yet read the policy.
Council member Chris Nettles said the update may give residents the impression that the city supports the controversial content some event holders promote. He wants them to know that approving event reservation applications does not equate to city leadership endorsing an event’s content, but he understands and shares their concerns.
“I support the original policy,” Nettles said. “I think it’s important that we are not discriminatory, that we don’t allow programming in our facilities that would promote or disinclude individuals of our communities.”
Council member Michael Crain described the updated policy as a “rededication to people’s First Amendment rights.”
“We live in a rule of law country, and I’m very respectful of the rule of law … the law has said this is what free speech looks like and what it is,” Crain said. “Just because I personally, or you personally, or someone else personally doesn’t agree with what that speech is, people still have a right to it — on both sides of whatever the issue might be. Once we start limiting what that is, it’s a very slippery slope.”
Previously, Fort Worth’s community center policy and procedures manual specified that groups that practice or profess discrimination on the basis of sex and other identity markers aren’t allowed to book events at city-owned community centers.
The updated policy comes months after city leaders faced heightened scrutiny for approving event reservations from local conservative activist groups. Parker tasked staff with updating event reservation policies after backlash over an April event reservation on “The Dangers of Transgenderism” planned by Texas Latinos United for Conservative Action, or LUCA. Carlos Turcios, director of the organization, did not immediately return a request for comment.
In July, the Tarrant County-based True Texas Project earned statewide headlines for hosting a conference at the city-owned Fort Worth Botanic Garden featuring sessions on “The War On White America,” “The Case For Christian Nationalism” and “Great Replacement Theory.” The group, formerly known as the Northeast Tarrant Tea Party, has appeared on a national list of extremist groups.
Local activists criticized the city for approving the event reservation, saying the event promoted hate speech and posed safety concerns to Fort Worth residents. City officials have maintained that allowing the event, as well as others criticized by residents, was necessary to protect the right to free speech.
Nettles said he understands concerns about free speech but believes the city should prioritize a welcoming environment for all — even if nondiscrimination clauses lead to legal issues.
“It will probably cost us money to have to fight these cases if we start defending and not allowing certain programming to happen,” Nettles said. “But at the end of the day, are we willing to make our community feel safe and welcoming to everybody? I think that’s what it boils down to. So no matter how much money it costs, we can do it.”
In an April 23 statement about the controversy over event bookings, Parker said “it is a slippery slope when government restricts free speech.” Activists and community members have called on Parker to take a stance on the events and denounce white supremacy.
“It’s one of those situations where you do have to pick a side,” Amy Ramsey, chief operating officer for the national nonprofit Defense of Democracy and an organizer of the protest outside the botanic garden, previously told the Report. “One of them is the side of fascism, and one of them is the side of ‘We just want to exist in Fort Worth without fear.’”
Ramsey did not immediately return a request for comment.
Under the new process for renting city facilities, staff will notify Fort Worth police if an event reservation application “indicates the potential for concern and/or includes alcohol,” according to McEachern’s email. Then, the police department will review the event information and monitor “online chatter.”
If warranted, the police department will determine how many off-duty police officers the event holder will be required to have on-site, and the event holder will be responsible for paying the cost to contract them. If the police department determines that on-duty officers are required outside of the facility as well, the city will cover that cost as part of normal operations, McEachern wrote.
The police department deployed four off-duty officers inside the Fort Worth Botanic Garden as security for the True Texas Project’s July event. Fort Worth Police Lt. Paul Genualdo declined to give a count of on-duty officers on site at the event, but more than a dozen squad cars were visible inside the garden, and a handful of officers stood near demonstrators protesting outside the garden.
The new rental policy was implemented by city staff without heading to City Council for a vote. Council members received a briefing on the policy update in August. McEachern previously told the Report that the policy falls under staff’s purview.
“The mayor and the council never weigh in to facility rentals,” McEachern said in July. “That’s really a management policy and a management decision, so they don’t ever actually even see the applications or any step in the process.”
Timeline of controversy over event reservation policies in Fort Worth
April 19: The Report published a story after the city canceled a reservation for an April 20 event on “The Dangers of Transgenderism” planned by Texas Latinos United for Conservative Action at the Forest Park Community Center. City spokesperson Reyne Telles told the Report that Fort Worth community centers are “dedicated to upholding a welcoming environment free from discrimination.”
April 23: Latinos United for Conservative Action published a statement from Mayor Mattie Parker that said she disagreed with staff’s handling of the event and that “it is a slippery slope when government restricts free speech.” Parker also instructed staff to “clean up the process” to prevent similar incidents in the future.
May 30: The city released a statement saying the April 20 event was canceled because of an incomplete application. After receiving a new and complete application from Latinos United for Conservative Action, the city approved the group’s request to host an event at the Fire Station Community Center on June 8.
June 8: Latinos United for Conservative Action hosted its event, which included a panel discussion on “the impact of LGBT ideology, the social contagion of transgenderism and the dangers of pornography.” Residents held an event celebrating LGBTQ pride at the adjacent park at the same time.
June 12: The Texas Tribune reported that the Fort Worth Botanic Garden would host an event for the True Texas Project. The event agenda included sessions on “The War On White America,” “The Case For Christian Nationalism” and “Great Replacement Theory.”
June 13: Several scheduled speakers, including former state Sen. Don Huffines, pulled out of the conference, and the botanic garden canceled the True Texas Project’s reservation, according to The Texas Tribune.
June 14: City officials reinstated True Texas Project’s event reservation, citing the First Amendment. City officials released a statement, saying the city and botanic garden “do not endorse or condone the beliefs, opinions, or viewpoints of groups or individuals who may rent its facilities.”
July 4: In an article published by the Report, Assistant City Manager Jesica McEachern said that language banning discriminatory events is “very likely” to be removed from the city’s event booking policies. Staff expected to complete part of its review by July 15.
July 10: After sending a letter urging city leaders to revoke the True Texas Project’s event registration, members of Defense of Democracy and Justice Network of Tarrant County told the Report they planned to protest the True Texas Project’s event at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden.
July 13: True Texas Project hosted its event at the botanic garden, as members of Defense of Democracy protested outside the venue. The conference featured several conservative activists, including Kyle Rittenhouse, who shot and killed two people during a 2020 racial justice protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Sept. 23: City officials released a statement detailing the city’s new policy on regulating events hosted at city-owned properties. The city will no longer impose content-based regulations on such events.
Editor’s note: This is a developing story and will be updated with new information as it becomes available.
Government Accountability Reporter Emily Wolf contributed to this report.
Cecilia Lenzen is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at cecilia.lenzen@fortworthreport.org or @bycecilialenzen.
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This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.