LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Occupy Louisville protesters are putting up a fight to keep their tents firmly planted.
The group's current permit allowing tents is set to expire at the end of the year; the city has said it ill renew the special event permit -- but it will not allow tents and camping.
Protesters say that means they won't be able to effectively show their protest 24 hours a day.
"It's just making it a little bit harder for us," Pamela Newman said last week. "We will still organize. We will still be the Occupation. Like other cities, it's not going to stop us. It's just an inconvenience."
Occupy Louisville organizers say if they can't continue to camp at Founder's Square, they want to be able to have tents at another location after the current permit expires at the end of the year.
They are hoping a judge will grant an injunction as soon as today, arguing that any move by the city to remove the would be a violation of free speech. Organizers say the tents they've set up are protected by the First Amendment.
The new permit issued by the city is valid for daylight hours only -- no tents and no camping. And that's just part of the conflict.
"I've been really touched to see how some homeless people have been empowered by being part of this community and having a sense of place," said Curtis Morrison, an Occupy Louisville protestor. "And I don't want to see that disappear."
City spokesman Chris Poynter says the group will be able to stay under the terms of the current permit that allows tents and camping even past January 1 until a new permit can be issued. And that may not happen until sometime next week.
Both sides say they want to avoid a confrontations.
We'll continue to follow this story and bring you updates as they become available.
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Curtis Morrison
