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The lawsuit seeks removal of the fence or opening of a fence door, contending it not only limits space for protests but also diminishes accessibility for those with mobility impairments.
Activists have filed a lawsuit contending a fence blocking off much of the plaza area at the Eugene Federal Building restricts rights of assembly and free speech, especially for those with disabilities or mobility impairments.
The lawsuit, filed June 4 in U.S. District Court in Eugene, asks for a judge to review the decision by the federal General Services Administration to install the fence.
Six individuals, represented by the Eugene-based Civil Liberties Defense Center, seek removal of the fence “and/or keeping the current door in the Plaza area of the fence open to the public,” according to the lawsuit.
The fence went up April 29, nearly three months after a Jan. 30 protest that Eugene police declared a riot following property damage and a report of a building “breach.” A review of Eugene police video by the city’s police auditor found no evidence of anyone entering the building, however.
Large amounts of tear gas were deployed by federal officers that evening, and also Jan. 31, with some chemical irritants used during protests Jan. 27.
“The current fencing greatly limits the access to the Free Speech Plaza and limits the ability of disabled people to safely access any area of the Free Speech Plaza other than the area adjacent to the sidewalk at 7th and Pearl — which is now packed with people because it is the only small area available to assemble,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit notes that plaza benches used by “elders in the community” to participate in events are behind the fence now, and the suit claims that a breezeway once accessible from Pearl Street — but now closed off by the fence — allowed people to access the plaza without having to climb up “a small flight of broad stairs” leading to the plaza and the corner section that remains open to the public.
The Eugene Federal Building has been a site of frequent demonstrations and protests opposing stepped-up immigration enforcement in the second term of President Donald Trump. Protesters have frequently cited concerns about a lack of due process for those detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which maintains a field office in the building.
In a statement before the fence went up, a spokesperson for the General Services Administration, known as the GSA, described the “temporary security barrier” as “necessary to ensure the continued safety and security of the building occupants and the facility itself.” The GSA manages federal properties, among other responsibilities.
Asked for comment Tuesday about the lawsuit, an agency spokesperson in an email said, “GSA does not comment on active litigation.”
But the lawsuit calls the decision to erect the fence “arbitrary and capricious in multiple respects,” in part because the agency has “failed to proffer a reasonable explanation for the building of the Fence” and also because the decision “reflects no consideration of reasonable alternative approaches.”
The activists seek a review under the federal Administrative Procedure Act, which allows for the setting aside of federal agency action if it is “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law,” or “contrary to constitutional right, power, privilege, or immunity,” among other reasons.
“As a proximate result of defendants’ unlawful action, plaintiffs have suffered and will continue to suffer injury to their First Amendment rights, for which no adequate remedy exists apart from review under the Administrative Procedure Act,” the lawsuit states.
In addition to affecting those with limited mobility, the lawsuit notes the smaller area available for protests. Among the activists filing the lawsuit is a nurse, Christopher Rompala, who participated in a Jan. 27 candlelight vigil organized by nurses after the death in Minneapolis of Alex Pretti, a U.S. citizen fatally shot by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers.
“Hundreds of community members attended this vigil. There is no way that vigil would fit into the small Federal Free Speech Plaza area that is currently open for public use,” the lawsuit says.
In addition to Rompala, others filing the lawsuit are: Naphtali Renshaw, Susan Barnhart, Tyrras Warren, Michael Carrigan and Charles Areford.
A hearing to present evidence and make arguments has been scheduled for June 18 before U.S. District Judge Mustafa Kasubhai.
