After witnessing the Select Board meeting Tuesday night, I was struck by the inclusion of speakers who were not Plymouth residents being given time to speak over voting residents regarding the involvement of the Plymouth Police Dept. with ICE raids. Several speakers, native and “wash ashore” residents of Plymouth were waiting to speak out against ICE’s presence and activities in Plymouth, but the chair [David Golden] decided that a 1-to-1 presentation of opinion was more fair when clearly there was a majority concerned about the issue and were not allowed to speak due to a lack of time. Maybe if only residents were allowed to speak at our meetings there would have been a more fair representation in the time allotted. Not all issues are 50/50.
My point here isn’t about either side of the matter – shouldn’t we all, as Plymouth residents, be concerned that non-residents are given time to voice opinions at Select Board meetings that will influence decisions for our town? What purpose can that serve?
– Shelley-Jo Rowell