Canton community members are speaking out after Canton City Council on Monday banned public comment during meetings.
Council voted 8 to 2 to eliminate the ‘public speaks’ period during meetings, citing safety concerns and recent threats on social media.
While public comments at some recent meetings have gotten heated, LaRinda Johnson, who regularly attends meetings, said that’s not a reason to ban the comment period outright.
“I was disappointed, but not surprised,” Johnson said. “It’s disappointing that others are, in a way, punished, or our right to speak is taken away.”
Calls and emails to Council President Kristen Bates Aylward were not immediately returned to Ideastream Tuesday.
"Public speaks has increasingly evolved into an unproductive and often hostile style," Council Majority Leader John Mariol said at Monday's meeting. "It has become routine for a small handful of individuals to use public speaks not to inform council, but [to] perform for social media."
Banning public comment isn’t the way to address disruption, said Maranda Saling, another frequent attendee. Council could implement restrictions, like other cities have, she said.
“What you can talk about, how long you can talk, the language in which you can [use], there are ways that they can control it,” Saling said. “This feels like council just didn't do their job to create the rules for everyone to have a safe and productive space. And that's a them problem.”
Last year, Cleveland and Akron councils implemented public comment restrictions, limiting comments to 10 speakers per meeting. In Akron, speakers must wait 30 days to speak again.
Johnson in Canton suggested city council adopt rules similar to Massillon City Council's, which give residents a chance to speak on agenda items at the beginning, and items not on the agenda at the end of the meeting.
While addressing the public Monday, Mariol noted residents can still voice their opinions to council members by calling or emailing them.
But Johnson added that the ban targets certain community members, like people who are unhoused or elderly, who may not have access to phones or email.
“There’s a feeling of being left behind, of feeling that they have something to offer,” Johnson said. “If they know that they can go to city council and be able to speak and directly engage, that’s huge.”
Saling added that there needs to be better education with residents about what topics Canton council can address. Council members can do a better job of connecting residents to resources, she said.
“[Speakers] come to Canton City Council very upset over something that Canton City Council is not responsible for, and then the city council members are annoyed and rolling their eyes at the person instead of helping them understand who the right elected official is to help them,” Saling said.
Saling is hopeful that public comment will be reinstated next year, when Louis Giavasis takes over as council president.
Giavasis was one of the two dissenting votes for the public comment ban.
Johnson, however, worries that Monday’s vote sets a dangerous precedent. Canton is a statutory city, which means it does not have its own city charter and follows the Ohio Revised Code, which does not require municipalities to have public comments at meetings.
