Want to help Forward Party of Colorado achieve minor party status in 2024?

We need your help to make it happen! We've identified Denvers Christkindlmarket event as a potential place for you to participate in democracy and help us gather signatures for your petition packets. It's open daily, free, and open to the public! Note that this will not be an officially organized event and is meant as a drop-in and out as needed. We recommend finding a significant other, friend, or fellow volunteer to join you!

❓What do I need to bring?

1. Petition packet

2. Pens

3. Any Forward gear (if you have it)

4. Clipboard

5. Eagerness to approach people

6. Other literature (business cards, pamphlets, trifolds, etc...)

7. Legal right to petitioning PDF (see below)

We definitely recommend wearing Forward apparel if possible, or bringing a printout to hold up so you can easily get attention of people passing by. If you do not have any literature or a petition packet, please contact [email protected] and we'll make sure to get you those items as soon as possible. If you finish your packet, please reach back out so we can get your packet turned in.

📅 When?

Denver's Christkindlmarket runs daily from November 17th - December 23rd

Hours:

• Sunday - Wednesday: 11am - 7pm
• Thursday - Saturday: 11am - 9pm
• Festival Hall Hours:
  • Thursday - Saturday: open until 10pm

📍Where?

Civic Center Park

101 W. 14th Ave. Denver, CO 80202

🗣️How to petition:

Check out our short petitioning instruction videos to learn more!

⚖️ Legal rights:

During your petitioning, you may have encounters with event staff or police who may ask you to leave. It's important to know that you have a constitutional right to petition and can stand your ground depending on the circumstances. Feel free to print out the PDF below and bring it with you to show just in case you have any run-ins.

🔗Know Your Rights: Petitioning

Some highlights of the link to know are:

• Circulating a petition is "core political speech" deserving of the strongest possible protection under the First Amendment.

• You may seek petition signatures from people coming to or leaving the festival by standing on public sidewalks, on streets closed to traffic and in public parks outside the area reserved for the public festival

• The question of whether you can petition within the inner perimeter of a festival or fair will depend on several factors. Initially, if the organizers allow for petitioning throughout the fair, then certainly you are free to petition where you wish. Also, several festivals and fairs have a designated area for non-profit organizations where you may petition – although some may require you to rent or reserve a booth in advance.

• Even though a festival takes place on public streets or sidewalks or on public land,organizers may restrict you from petitioning in the area reserved for the fair under certain circumstances. For example, fair organizers may establish rules to prevent you from wandering the fairgrounds to seek signatures when 1) you have the option of petitioning from a booth or table in a designated area of the fair; 2) the fairgrounds are only open to those who pay an admission fee; 3) the rule is necessary to ensure the orderly movement of people in crowded areas; and 4) the organizers don’t allow people to engage in other kinds of activity that would obstruct pedestrian traffic flow.12 However, if a festival in a downtown area is open to regular pedestrian traffic and street vendors are permitted to setup tables on sidewalks within the perimeter of the fair, then you have a right to petition on the public sidewalks.

• You have a constitutional right to approach strangers to talk about matters of public importance and ask them to sign your petition. The possibility that some people might disagree with you – or even might find your campaign offensive – would not justify a government ban on petitioners engaging pedestrians in conversation. Although you are free to argue with someone about political matters, if someone tells you that she is not interested in signing or talking, you should respect the person’s wishes and should not follow or harass her.