CLEVELAND — Cleveland City Council is considering changes to its public comment period of meetings after weeks of comments opposing city leaders' stance on Israel, two instances involving the microphone being cut, and one meeting where commenters chanted, held up signs, and disrupted the gathering.
The current rules have been in place since City Council's first public comment period two years ago. Over the last month, much of that time has been filled with Palestinian Americans and supporters calling out officials — including Mayor Justin Bibb — for their support of Israel during the ongoing war in Gaza.
"Am I to reiterate the danger of rhetoric used to dehumanize my people?" one woman said during the most recent Council meeting on Nov. 13.
"How much blood do you need on your hands before you call for a ceasefire?" another man asked during the same meeting.
During the Oct. 30 Council meeting, a crowd of protestors filled the chambers, applauding each person who commented in support of Palestine. They chanted phrases like, "Free! Free! Palestine!" and "Mayor Bibb, you can't hide! We charge you with genocide!"
"What we've experienced the last three weeks is outrageous, unacceptable," Ward 8 Councilman Mike Polensek told 3News Monday after a meeting to discuss proposed rule changes. "Public comment is supposed to be just that — to come in and voice your concerns about Cleveland issues, Cleveland concerns. We see the majority of these folks coming in from the suburbs expressing their issues on international issues, concerns."
Now, councilmembers are considering changes to limit comments "to one item currently under consideration by Council." The draft of proposed changes removes concerns regarding "indecent or discriminatory language" and instead prohibits comments that are "frivolous, repetitive or harassing in nature" and "language that is obscene or threatening."
"It seems to me they've replaced one vague set of viewpoint-based standards with another set of vague viewpoint standards," Andrew Geronimo, director of Case Western Reserve University's First Amendment Clinic, said.
The clinic is currently representing a man whose microphone was cut during his comment in the Sept. 25 City Council meeting, where he read a list of contributions from the council leadership fund. During that meeting — which happened before the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel — Council President Blaine Griffin also cut the mic for another commenter who was accused of making homophobic and antisemitic remarks.
Geronimo said he worries about the proposed rule change that would allow the presiding authority at City Council meetings to "immediately and temporarily suspend public comment in his or her discretion for a violation of these Rules and Procedures."
"We're concerned that they will use these policies to discriminate against viewpoints that they disagree with," he explained. "It seems as if they are trying to legislate away criticism of public officials and even City Councilmembers."
In response to a request from 3News, City Council Chief of Communications Joan Mazzolini said, "The new Rules and Procedures for Public Comment will place reasonable regulations on the time, place, manner and content of public comment, as a limited public forum may do under the law. The new Rules and Procedures will not regulate speech based on viewpoint, including whether it is considered disrespectful, or whether it is critical of government or government officials."
Mazzolini added that the draft of proposed changes will be revised before Council votes on it. She noted other councils across the country limit public comment to what is on that particular meeting's agenda.