EDITORIAL: Mayor is correct on speech and council civility

The tone of city council meetings took a dramatic turn for the worse when a local resident spoke up at the September 9 meeting. Lewis Kent took the opportunity to skewer the mayor and council for the State Fair funding issues, which is his right. When he subsequently launched the "n" word to describe what he perceived to be treatment by the council, he definitely crossed the line.

Last Tuesday during the council meeting, Mayor Hornady reminded Kent that he was to "maintain proper decorum and civility" when he approached the podium to speak. She admonished him about his language and told him that further uses of such language would result in his removal from the council chambers by the police.

Kent defiantly went on to say he had the right to say anything he wanted. "You do what you have to do mayor and I'll do what I have to do as a citizen of the country with free speech," said Kent.

Kent certainly has the right to speak his mind. The freedom of speech is guaranteed in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and is one of America's most cherished rights. Where Kent strolls into unacceptable verbiage is when he wraps his thoughts around one of the most vile words in the language. The use of the "n" word is deplorable in a public forum  -- or anywhere -- and introduces hate speech into the debate. Whatever point Kent was trying to make was lost in his sewer-oriented vocabulary.

Hornady is right to zero in on Kent's lack of decorum and civility. To taint the council meeting with hate speech is a blatant disregard for community values. He could have made his point in a myriad of different ways, but he elected to wade through the muck and mire of the gutter to deliver his message.

We respect his right to speak his mind, but applaud the mayor for demanding a civil tone in the council chambers.