Pentagon rejects plan to use its parking lots for annual Memorial Day rally

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Defense officials have denied veterans advocates permission to stage their annual Memorial Day motorcycle rally at the Pentagon parking lot, saying the crowd size poses a potential public health threat given the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The decision will force up to 10,000 participants already planning on attending the event to set up somewhere else in Washington for the weekend, complicating — but not outright cancelling — the annual tradition.

"There are no options with as much space and convenient routes to the memorials [as the Pentagon parking lot], meaning it will be more difficult, disruptive, and expensive than if they were available," said Joe Chenelly, national executive director for AMVETS, the organizers of the ride.

"We don't have time to worry about who has said no to us at this point," he said. "We are now squarely focused on pulling together everything we need in the final few weeks."

The "Rolling to Remember" event is scheduled for May 30. It is the successor to the annual Rolling Thunder motorcycle ride that was held for 32 years to draw attention to American service members still missing in action from wars overseas.


Read full story at: MilitaryTimes.com