Reps. Ritchie Torres and Yvette Clarke Introduce the Our Parks Act

Bill Would Guarantee Free Admission to National Parks on All Federal Holidays in Response to President Trump’s Removal of Juneteenth and MLK Day

Reps. Ritchie Torres (NY-15) and Yvette Clarke (NY-09) today introduced the Our Parks Act, legislation to guarantee free admission to all national parks on every federal holiday and prevent any Presidential Administration from unilaterally rescinding those free-admission days.

The legislation follows President Donald Trump’s decision to eliminate free national park admission on Juneteenth and Martin Luther King Jr. Day, two federal holidays honoring Black freedom, civil rights, and equality under the law. At the same time, the administration designated President Trump’s birthday as a day of free admission.

“Our national parks belong to the people, not to Donald Trump,” said Rep. Torres. “When a president singles out Juneteenth and Martin Luther King Jr. Day for elimination, while adding his own birthday instead, it is impossible to ignore the message that sends. That is not leadership — it is narcissism and a wannabe-king mentality that treats public institutions as extensions of one small man’s ego. Congress has a responsibility to stop presidents from using public lands to play politics or erase the significance of Black history.”

“There is no greater priority to Donald Trump than seeing his own name plastered everywhere and anywhere that it has not already sullied; especially in the spaces it has no place being. Clearly, the chance to fulfill that goal while simultaneously serving up a screeching dog whistle to his base’s most despicable elements was an opportunity he could not ignore,” said Rep. Clarke. “No matter how deeply the president wishes it were, this nation is not his plaything. Our institutions are not tools to inflate his ego. And our holidays are not going anywhere. Black History is permanent. Our heroes will stay celebrated, our culture will stay relevant, and our stories will stay told. The same cannot be said for the president. While he struggles desperately to change that inevitability, Congress must act to protect this country and our communities from the consequences of one old demagogue’s insecurities.”