DENVER — Starting Jan. 1, there will no longer be free admission to Rocky Mountain National Park or any other national park on Martin Luther King Jr. Day or Juneteenth. The Trump administration removed those from the list of free-admission days but added Flag Day, which also happens to be Presidents' Day. Trump's birthday.
To better understand the impact of this change, Denver7 anchor Shannon Ogden spoke with the Denver NAACP president about removing these two significant days in Black and American Civil Rights history.
"My view is that these decisions may serve as a distraction for the country," said Denver NAACP president Tony D. Henderson.
The new free-admission policy was one of several changes announced by the park service late last month, including higher admission fees for international visitors. In addition to these policy shifts, some observers view recent steps by the Trump administration as downplaying American civil rights history. Earlier this year, for example, Trump ordered several National Park Service sites to remove materials related to slavery.
"Dr. King and Juneteenth are not just about African American people; it's about the history of America," added Henderson.
Other free admission days next year include Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Constitution Day, Veterans Day, Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday (Oct. 27), and the Park Service's anniversary (Aug. 25).
There are four national parks in Colorado:Rocky Mountain National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, and Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.
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