The OBSERVER that at the last Fredonia Board of Trustees workshop session this past Wednesday (May 20) that the Mayor and Trustee Esperson intend to impose as soon as possible a suspension of the public comment period at Village Board meetings. The allegation made by the mayor was Fredonia citizens were threatening the mayor and board members.

Not true.

I observe or attend most Village Board meetings and this allegation of threats or harm to Village officials are not true. There is nothing that has happened at Village Board meetings to justify the claim it’s unsafe to the officials or to the public.

At the last Board meeting there was an isolated incident involving two or three people. This incident did not involve threats against the Mayor or any Board member or anyone else. The incident was limited to at most three members of the public. No threats of violence or any harm were made, but there was yelling between the parties. This incident is not cause to deny the public the privilege of addressing their elected representatives, a long and well established practice at Fredonia Village Board meetings. Speaking loud or emotionally without any threat of violence is not a crime.

The NYS Committee on Open Government has stated regarding public comments: “As long as the public comments are “not abusive, threatening, profane or in any other way illegal the person making the comments should not be removed from the meeting.” “Silencing or removing a person because that person may disagree or offer a unique point of view would be contrary to principles familiar to all (or most) all of us.” ” It has been held by federal courts that if a public body permits positive comments regarding a particular topic, the door is open all the way and it must accept critical comments as well.”

What the Mayor and Trustee Esperson are proposing is to punish all Village citizens because of conduct of two or three people by prohibiting all public comments at Village Board meetings. Cooler heads need to prevail..

The tradition of allowing Fredonia residents to address their elected representatives at Village Board meetings needs to be protected and encouraged. The Mayor and Trustee Espersen’s remedy for the incident is to punish all attendees at Village Board meetings by suspending and curtailing free speech.

Sam Drayo Jr. is a Fredonia resident.