From The Margins:

After sitting in on a few City Council meetings, what’s struck me is the general void of public participation. Perhaps experiencing a few meetings is not a good enough gauge — time may prove me wrong, but as it stands now, it appears residents are not making themselves heard during the oral communications portion of the meeting.

There are of course two exceptions: Margaret Hammond and Herbert Molano. They are both now as familiar to the public as the City Council members. Regardless of whether one agrees with their opinions or agendas, no one can argue against the fact that they are persistent, and invest some time in preparing topics that they believe should concern the city.

During the last council meeting I was expecting the routine presentations by Hammond and Molano, and was not disappointed. But what I was not prepared for was the ridicule Molano was subjected to by some on the council after he had left the chambers.

Molano had chosen to speak about a few issues during the meeting. The first was an argument against the credibility of the satisfaction survey conducted by Glendale Water & Power. Then he questioned the wisdom of a union contract that promises a 6% pay increase to Glendale police in July. Molano argued that the City Council should have been able to predict the current economic downturn, and so should have been more fiscally conservative drafting the multiyear contract.

City Manager Jim Starbird was able to successfully challenge Molano’s case — fine, but what followed was quite unnecessary. Initiated by Councilman Ara Najarian, supported by Mayor Frank Quintero and encouraged by smiles from Councilman Dave Weaver, Molano was ridiculed for his position on the union contract. Some even challenged him to predict the future. Granted, there is no ordinance restricting council members on how and when to address the public, and Molano’s argument was weak, yet residents have the right to expect more professional behavior from their City Council members. Ridiculing individuals who choose to speak in public is not why we elect officials to office.

Molano is not and will not be the first person to put an interesting spin on his facts. The larger issue here is the discouraging effect that ridicule might have on public participation. What happened to Molano last week cannot be very encouraging to residents who are already shy about standing up to the podium to voice their opinions.

As leaders of our city and the voice of the residents, City Council members are expected to set an example for the rest of us in tolerating and respecting opinions they may not share.

 PATRICK AZADIAN is a writer, Glendale resident and the director of admissions at Mt. Sierra College in Monrovia. He may be reached at respond@fromthemargins.net.