National Declassification Center Open Forum August 29, National Archives, DC

The National Declassification Center of the National Archives and Records Administration will hold its third annual Open Forum on August 29, from 10:00 am to 12:00 noon at the National Archives Building, 9th and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC. This agency was created by President Obama’s January 2009 Executive Order on classification and declassification, and tasked with the immediate release of all government agency records classified for more than 25 years, without agency review.

At their first Open Forum NARA official Michael Kurtz, in response to public pressure about the importance of the remaining classified files on the JFK assassination, assured critics that these records would get an expedited release. At their second Forum last year, they announced that he had spoken in error and that the presidential order did not include these records in their scope. At this year’s forum we want to be there to let them know that the release of these files in 2013 is required by both law and public interest. 50 years is enough. There is no continuing government interest in making them secret that can be justified, and the JFK Records Act standards require no less.

This event is open to the public and you many contact Don McIlwain, don.mcilwain@nara.gov or 301-837-0587 for additional information or to submit advance questions. Thanks to researcher Bill Kelly for this notice.