Should cities remove offensive comments from the public record? Shawnee thought so.
No one said anything when a former Shawnee city councilwoman, Tracy Thomas, referred to a Kansas City apartment building as the “Blue Jew” during a meeting in early October.
But two weeks later, the planning commission decided to remove Thomas’ comment from the public record, saying it was “offensive” and should not be included in the meeting minutes.
Thomas made the comment during a public hearing on Oct. 7, voicing opposition to a luxury apartment complex, Stag’s Spring, proposed for downtown Shawnee. She argued against the apartment’s facade being an “unappealing” shade of blue, comparing it to the Meyer West Condos in Kansas City’s Brookside neighborhood.
“You know, in Kansas City, Missouri you’ve got what the, what people in Brookside lovingly call the Blue Jew, the eight-foot — the eight-story apartment building at Wornall and Gregory,” she said, referring to the landmark building at 333 West Meyer Blvd.
Last week, Planning Commission Chairman Dennis Busby asked that the phrase be redacted.
“That’s offensive and it shouldn’t be said,” Busby said last Monday. “I’m sorry that I didn’t catch it at the time it was said. My feeling is that it has nothing to do with Shawnee or the project, and therefore it is of no value, and is therefore offensive, and should be taken out of there.”
In an interview, Thomas told The Star she stands by her comment. She insisted her “Jewish friends say that.”
“I think in America, the socialists and the conservatives are in a war of words,” Thomas said. “And they are looking to nitpick and attack people who don’t agree with them.”
Some tenants of the building and members of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau said they have heard of the condo building being referred to as the “Blue Jew.” Many added it was an outdated reference to a building that once housed a large Jewish population.
“I do think that’s very offensive. Everyone who lives here is just nice, and we’re really a community here,” tenant Glenda Tompkins said. “I do feel (the comments should be removed) because who knows who is going to read the record later on and have this phrase stuck in their heads.”
Thomas, who sat on the council from 1999 to 2004, said the redaction is an example of “hyper vigilantism” and a violation of free speech. It’s not the first time Thomas has said something controversial at a public meeting, and she readily admits she doesn’t get along with many people in City Hall.
“You don’t rewrite testimony,” she said. “It’s not (Busby’s) job to be the editor of legal testimony.”
Should offensive comments be removed?
Gavriela Geller, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee, said she is aware of the Kansas City apartment building’s old moniker—and said it could be used to perpetuate stereotypes.
“It’s kind of the thing where, a community can make jokes or generalizations within the community. But you shouldn’t really be repeating those things if you’re not part of the community,” Geller said. “I wouldn’t call it antisemitic. She probably didn’t mean anything by it. But those are the kind of things we should all be sensitive to. And it’s not appropriate to be repeating those things, especially at a public forum.”
Geller said she “appreciates the sensitivity” shown by commissioners in removing the comment, but questioned whether Shawnee’s boards “apply the same logic consistently.”
At last week’s meeting, commissioners said they were not sure whether they could legally remove a portion of the record, but still voted to do so.
“If later our attorney says we can’t do that, then we won’t do it again,” Busby said, voting to remove the two words from the record. “That’s what I love about Shawnee. It’s always, if you do it, just ask for apologies later. But we’ll learn on this.”
While cities vary on how they maintain meeting minutes, the Shawnee Planning Commission’s record includes a verbatim transcript of each residents’ comments. Under the Kansas Open Records Act, individual boards and commissions are tasked with keeping a “record of all proceedings.”
“I believe the best practice is to allow the Planning Commission to exercise discretion in regard to what constitutes the official minutes or record of the Planning Commission,” City Attorney Ellis Rainey said.
Lauren Bonds, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas, said legal precedent shows boards and commissions have the right to restrict public comments or actions when they are disruptive. She said cases of boards restricting offensive language are far less clear.
“A group of commission members decided it was offensive among themselves. I do think there’s some danger in that becoming a regular occurrence, because I think it can definitely be used to edit or redact viewpoints they disagree with,” Bonds said. “If they are redacting comments that are permissible under the First Amendment, I do think there’s a little bit of a threat to free speech there.”
Removing the comment because it was irrelevant to the discussion could be a stronger argument, Bonds said, but added, “if you dig into it, you’d find a lot of references to irrelevant material in the meeting minutes.”
Bonds said commissions should have clear rules regarding what might be considered disruptive or inappropriate comments, so that members may address them when they are said.
Geller said she appreciates that the commissioners wanted to ensure other people do not read the meeting minutes and perpetuate stereotypes or offensive nicknames. But she argued it would have been a better practice to address the issue in the moment or add an addendum to the minutes confirming the commission does not condone the language.
“Are they really redacting everything that could be offensive in their meeting minutes? Is that the case, or are they making a big deal out of this?” she asked.
Still, the tenants interviewed at Meyer West Condos said they were grateful the comments were removed. They agreed the nickname was from “40 years ago” and should not be used today.
“That’s disgraceful,” said 79-year-old tenant Margaret May. “I haven’t heard anyone who lives here saying anything offensive about anyone, any race or color.”
This story was originally published October 29, 2019 at 5:00 AM.
