Secret Service: Fencing around Lafayette Square to stay up for now

Fencing around Lafayette Square across the street from the White House will remain up until further notice even as barriers south of the White House start to come down, officials said Tuesday.

“The temporary fencing on the south side of the White House complex, to include the Ellipse, will be removed on or about June 10,” a spokesperson for the Secret Service said in a statement to The Hill.

“The Secret Service is in continuing discussions with the U.S. Park Police regarding the temporary security fencing in and around Lafayette Park,” the person added.

The plans appeared to be a shift from earlier Tuesday, when multiple outlets reported that the National Park Service would begin to take down at least some of the fencing around Lafayette Square on Wednesday.

Secret Service previously said the fencing would remain in place until June 10. The new, unclear timeline will likely provoke criticism among lawmakers who have called for the barriers around the park to come down.

Fences were erected around the White House complex last week as demonstrations grew in size in response to the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died after a white police officer in Minneapolis knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

The fencing around Lafayette Square was installed after law enforcement dispersed protesters from the area using smoke canisters and tear gas on June 1 ahead of President Trump’s visit to nearby St. John’s Episcopal Church for a photo op.

The protests have been peaceful for the last several days, and demonstrators have turned the fencing near Lafayette Square into a makeshift memorial to highlight victims of police brutality and racial injustice.