Aurora Pride: parade is not officially canceled, yet

Update (6/9/2022 - 5:30 p.m.): Aurora Pride posted the following statement to their website late Thursday: "Great News! The City of Aurora has notified us that our permit for Sunday has been reinstated. The Aurora Pride Parade is on. We look forward to welcoming everyone on Sunday morning."  

Organizers of the third annual Aurora Pride Parade faced another setback Thursday when a judge refused to reinstate their permit, after being revoked by the City of Aurora over police staffing issues.

As a result, the judge said the 2022 parade will not go forward.

Still, organizers said the parade is not off just yet.

“The permit revocation appeal has been denied. Federal lawsuit is being filed in short order,” Aurora Pride said in a statement following the court hearing Thursday.. “To be clear, one of the aims of this suit is reversal of the permit revocation and preservation of Sunday's parade.”

The permit was revoked after the Aurora Police Department earlier this week said it could not supply enough sworn officers to provide security for the event, planned for June 12.

Police blamed sick calls and vacations on the shortage. Police further said that staffing for privately run special events requires law enforcement to work outside of their regularly assigned duties, and that extra jobs and overtime shifts are voluntary.

The event is short about 20 police officers. 

The staffing issues surfaced two weeks after Aurora Pride's decision to ban uniformed and armed police officers from marching in this year's parade.

"It is unacceptable that Aurora City officials have denied a permit for the upcoming Pride Parade," the ACLU of Illinois, which represents Aurora Pride, said in a statement Thursday. "The Parade has been a family friendly event, aimed at welcoming all members of the Aurora community for a celebration of diversity and inclusion. Rather than embrace this event – as thousands of members of the community have done over the past few years – City officials have created a faux controversy and refuse to provide adequate security so that everyone has the opportunity to celebrate safely."

The ACLU said it plans to take the case to federal court. 

This story is still developing.