A controversial group booked city space for a meeting. Now, community members are asking who should be allowed to use city-owned property.

An August meeting, led by the local branch of a conservative parents’ rights organization, sparked a protest and ongoing questions about how the city of Albuquerque decides who can rent its public spaces.

On Aug. 23, the Albuquerque chapter of Moms for Liberty booked a room at the North Domingo Baca Multigenerational Center. The meeting drew a small group of protesters, some of whom expressed concerns that the organization was able to book a space at a city-run center.

Nancie Furgang said she was “shocked” when she found out Moms for Liberty, which was classified as an extremist group earlier this year by the Southern Poverty Law Center, was renting city spaces.

“I think when you’re dealing with groups that have a political agenda, that has to be looked at,” said Furgang, who protested the meeting.

Based on a 2018 resolution passed by the City Council, which set a standard policy for how the Department of Senior Affairs rents public spaces, any government entity, public interest group, public school and/or individual can book a space for free as long as it’s a one-time use and is free and open to the public. Groups that charge attendance fees, as well as private and recurring events, are subject to certain fees.

In this case, said Senior Affairs spokesperson Victoria Velarde, an individual booked the room and ran an event that was free and open. The 2018 resolution doesn’t include any language that would prohibit a person or group from booking a space based on their affiliation.

And, denying access could come in conflict with First Amendment rights.

In a statement, American Civil Liberties Union New Mexico senior civil liberties attorney Kristen Greer Love said because of the First Amendment, if a government agency allows individuals or groups to rent spaces, it can’t discriminate based on who those people are — unless their group is speaking violently or genuinely threatening violence.

“The government cannot treat one group differently from others based on the group’s views or the content of the group’s speech, even if their views and speech are abhorrent and hateful,” Greer Love said. “When the government generally allows groups to use a public space — like a library meeting room — it cannot prohibit certain groups from using that space based on their viewpoints or speech.”

But some called for further scrutiny of political groups using city property.

In response to concerns about vetting groups, Velarde said, “We are having ongoing conversations as a department about how to best protect everyone who attends our centers.”

Sarah Jane Allen, the founder of Albuquerque’s chapter of Moms for Liberty, said she had no discussion beforehand with city staff about what the group stands for.

“To me, we’re a part of the community … and we should be able to meet in an area that’s open to the public,” Allen said.

Sandra Palmer said she was still concerned about who is allowed to use Albuquerque community centers. Palmer said she feels renting spaces to controversial groups like Moms for Liberty can indicate “tacit approval” of their views from the city, although she noted center staff seemed unaware of the group’s platform.

Palmer said renting to divisive organizations seems to go against the purpose of community centers — that is, “bringing the community together.”

“If it’s the garden club, it’s one thing,” Palmer said.

Furgang said she and the small group of protesters, which included Palmer, quietly carried signs outside the North Domingo Baca Multigenerational Center, which is near Paseo and Wyoming NE. Metro security, which provides security services to city property, was called to the location as a precaution, Velarde said; both protesters and Allen said there was no conflict between the two groups.

Furgang said she was unable to attend the meeting. Upon entering the center with a sign, she said staff told her she needed a membership to enter the meeting room.

“It was a little bit distressing to think that this is a city facility, and I was not allowed in to just peacefully sit in that room,” Furgang said.

Velarde said nobody was barred from the meeting.

“In fact, (center staff) actually went out of their way to remind the meeting host that the meeting must remain open to the public,” Velarde said.

Allen said center staff asked her about including the protesters outside, and she responded that Moms for Liberty had “no problem” allowing them into the meeting.

“It’s not like we’re secluding it at all,” Allen said. “One of the protesters wanted to join us, and we welcomed her in.”

Both Furgang and Allen noted that one protester sat in on the meeting. Palmer said policies seemed “inconsistent”; she was initially able to enter the building without issue before the meeting started, but said other protesters who tried to enter later were asked for membership cards.