Politics & Government

Letter to the Editor: Council Meeting Hat Ban "Frivolous"

Resident finds recent ban of hats at council meetings to be personally intrusive.

Perhaps you saw this note and graphic in Friday's Manager's Report:

"Hat Regulations for Council Chambers – A sign requesting that visitors remove hats and silence cell phones has been posted at the entrance to the Council Chambers."

I was curious about this, so I asked about it. The Mayor responded that it has something to do with people not removing hats for the Pledge of Allegiance. The Village Manager responded that a commissioner was concerned about "security" in Council Chambers. It was Commissioner Durkin who was concerned, and he confirmed that he was motivated by both reasons, but without further explanation.

So it appears we have at least one Village Commissioner who is afraid of hats (cocklaphobia).

Still seems both frivolous and personally intrusive to me. Really, is regulating dress code really a "core" function of local government?  I have yet to imagine how hats could be a "security" concern in Council Chambers!

--John Schofield

P.S. The Village Manager assured me, there is no intention to abridge residents' First Amendment rights.  So maybe a "hat-in" would be an appropriate response at the next meeting.


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