Some Community Members Get More Free Speech Than Others

It was glaringly apparent to me, and also to Julie Van Dyke, that when former Iowa City Community School District board president Marla Swesey took over for current board president Sally Hoelscher, who was absent at the 3/25/14 board meeting, the three-minute rule for community comment was applied selectively and unequally for different speakers.

As Julie said, Phil's three minutes started before he got to the microphone. Julie's three minutes ends the second the bell rings if she hasn't stopped speaking prior to that.

Jason T. Lewis, inclined to be a slow starter out of the gate, mentioning his flashbacks, his deja vu experiences, which could be eliminated to save time, was allowed to complete his thought after the bell had rung, including the end of one sentence and at least one more sentence.

Had Pres. Sally Hoelscher been there, perhaps when the bell rang everyone would have been ruthlessly cut off mid-sentence as is usually the case when she's there.

Which would we prefer? Ruthless but fair, or polite but unfair?

It's surprising that anyone has the guts to come and speak to the board. Community members speak, say cogent and compelling things to the board, things that ought to make the board pause and think, but board members go right ahead and do what they were going to do anyway.

Speaking to the board would be a waste of time if community comment weren't so valuable to the public. Obviously, the board and top district administrators remain completely unaffected. If we were to vote for them or pay them based on their ability to listen and communicate effectively, they'd all be out of office or fired.

When Marla Swesey apologized to Phil Hemingway for forgettting to allow him to speak prior to a vote, he said, "That's okay. You were going to do it anyway."

Truer words were never spoken. The board listens and does what it was going to do anyway.