Videos beg question: Should anyone be allowed to speak at City Council?
This article is a bit unusual, as we have to break our own rules. While browsing the Video section of our sister site SLOnews.com we ran across a couple bizarre Youtube videos of recent San Luis Obispo City Council meetings that we wanted to share with you, where a SLO local named Sifu Kelvin Harrison is allowed, in the name of free speech and public access, to speak his mind (I guess that’s what you’d call it). Both are a tirade of charges of discrimination in our city. They are so crazy we don’t even know what to say. And he has spoken many more times than just in these two videos we’ve included here. So, forgive us for breaking our own rules and publishing a non-opinion piece in SLOpinion, but we are after your opinions on this one. Should someone like this be allowed to speak whenever he wishes at our council meetings or not, and why?
In the September 16, 2008 meeting of the San Luis Obispo City Council, Mr. Harrison goes on about restroom discrimination, the Verteran’s Administration, someone handing him a business card and more. Whew!
In the October 7, 2008 meeting, Mr. Harrison rants about someone trying to run him over at Farmers Market and Art’s Cyclery not fixing his bicycle right. And some other things we can’t quite understand. And he calls for a government military takeover.
Thanks to Youtube user CPColin2 for posting the videos. Keep ‘em coming.
We’re interested in reading your comments in the Comments section below.
Tags: city council, discrimination
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13 Responses to “Videos beg question: Should anyone be allowed to speak at City Council?”
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Latest on Mon, 19:49: So I was in line in the market and there was Obama the Savior on the cover of Men's Health magazine. Uh, a health magazine? A decades-long smoker? One who won't release his medical records (McCain released 1200 pages)? One could could die of lung cancer? Hmmm, could there be a little bias? Naw, not in this election! LOL!
: Warning! Be careful going to Santa Maria. If you must, don't go at night! Have you read about all the murders and robberies? It's getting bad.
: Goodbye Insomniac Video, sorry to see you go. Thanks to Bob Whiteford for his 12 years of serving our community.
: I'm happy airlines are leaving our airport! It will help reduce growth since many people will not move here unless they can easily fly in and out. Businesses will think twice too. We can have SLO to ourselves! And those of us staying in town more will spend our money locally, not on vacations. Staycation here! We'll still get tourists driving in from the north, south and east. Our tourism economy will survive.
: "They" say that all politics are local. The same greed and mismanagement that has led us to national failure will soon visit us in SLO if developers and "consultants" [read lobbyists] get their way and turn the small-town ambience of SLO into just another shopping stop between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Vote out incumbents and elect Terry MOHAN, Dan CARPENTER and John ASHBAUGH, who will represent the wishes of the majority and the general plan. They won't run SLO for the convenience of just a few but will "run" this town for the residents.
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They should just ban people like this from speaking. What a waste of time. Let them speak once, and then put them on a blacklist if they are nonsensical like him. Once chance to be coherent.
George on October 13th, 2008 7:47 pmMr. Harrison is one of SLO’s homeless who have a mental disability. I have met him on several occasions at Meadow Park. At first his conversation seems “normal” until he feels as though something being said is an “attack” on his sense of self - at which point he does begin a vocal “tirade.”
His mental disability does cause him to behave in a manner consistant with delusional paranoia. Sadly, because there is a lack of facilities which could provide this individual with the help he needs, he is left to roam the streets of SLO.
With regards to the question posed by this post:
The U.S. Constitution does guarantee every citizen the right to freedom of speech and the right to seek “redress” from the government.
That Mr. Harrison was allowed to “speak his mind,” despite that it was not addressing any topic on the agenda for those two evenings, is the price we pay in order to ensure that the rights of all citizens are protected.
Having said that - it would seem to me that there must be some manner which the City Council could legally require some form of guidelines to preclude such philippic speeches within Council Chambers.
michael on October 13th, 2008 9:48 pmMichael-
Jeff on October 17th, 2008 4:31 amWhat a thoughtful, eloquent and compassionate response to this video.
Thank you. I hope there are many people like you in the world.
He has every right to say what he wants at a city council meeting. Just because he’s homeless, he’s still a taxpayer and last time I checked in America there is something called freedom of speech.
I dont think he has a mental disability, he’s just not a good speaker. I dont think it should even be a question of letting any US citizen be allowed to speak at a city council meeting of their town.
It would infuriate me If SLO city council picked and choosed their public speakers.
America is already turning into a Plutocracy, A nation that is politically corrupt run by the wealth of the rich.
So what is this news article about? Making fun of a guy with poor speech skills?
What I like about him the most is that he can think for himself. Alot of people dont think for themselves because they are afraid of losing their jobs because of what they say. So they all just fall in line (SLO city council)
David on October 17th, 2008 6:22 pmDavid: Think for himself? Are you serious? That’s not thinking. He’s just rambling off a series of meaningless things. It’s a waste of time. It’s not his political viewpoint and it’s not that he’s homeless. It’s that he is nuts and is wasting time.
Tim on October 17th, 2008 6:39 pmYes Tim, I am serious. He has every right to say what he wants. He just has poor speech skills and he’s angry. I would say he is poorly educated as well.
So you want to take away his rights as a citizen because you dont understand him?
What if he stood up there and spoke in Russian or German. Would you still want to take away his rights?
Here is the main thing though.. He is being Civil. He’s not tossing around cuss words, he has something to say and is saying it. Its not like he’s standing there with a machine gun
David on October 17th, 2008 9:04 pmHere he goes again. From the youtube video description: He launches into a tirade about going on a date, “psychological and astrological, modern, space-age ways” of domination, Slime in his bicycle tires, the distinction between “homeless guy” and “political prisoner,” and “covert racism.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fMXlBVN1CQ
Mark Fleming on October 23rd, 2008 2:25 pmExecute him.
Vespatian on November 8th, 2008 4:46 amLove it!
whoisjohngalt on November 10th, 2008 7:16 pmDavid is a sockpuppet for mr. Harrison.
He shouldn’t be able to take the title of sifu if he’s just a crazy homeless guy.
Wicket on January 4th, 2009 7:00 pmThoughtful and Eloquent response? Are you kidding? The only one I hear “ranting and raving” is some blogger named “Michael.” And “Jeff” is worse to praise this individual. What price are you paying Michael? Listening to a man (homeless or not), speak his mind while you watch from the audience scared to speak your mind? Actually, you’re probably surfing channels on your plasma. I say this.. YES, this is the price we pay idiot! We have to give a whole 2 minutes of respect for someone to “speak his mind”. Furthermore, his issue does not have to be on any agenda……just his. Freedom of his speech NOT yours Moron! Deal with it!
Jay Broni on January 23rd, 2009 2:22 amI have sat through two of these tirades and whenever I go to CC meetings I make sure I miss the early public input to avoid hearing more. It is loud (way) and incoherent, so very annoying. I feel for the council members who are a captive audience. For the benefit of all there I think these outbursts should be limited. If he has a beef he should get some attention for that but he is just using the council as some sort of outlet, and punishes the public as well. So one guy gets his ‘rights’, and everyone else suffers. There is something wrong with that formula.
hotdog on February 21st, 2009 6:42 amI have known Mr. Harrison for several years.
John on May 19th, 2010 7:08 pmFirst of all, he is not homeless. He uses the parks to train.
Second of all he has served in the US Army for several years. Let’s show a little respect.
He has a right to speak, even if you don’t understand why. It may be difficult for some white people to understand that non white people are not treated the same way. If he has been discriminated against, which I am certain he has, he has a reason to be angry about it. We all would be.
His thoughts are not as organized as they could be, and he is definitely not a good speaker.
Shame on anyone who wants to stop people from having their say - maybe you should move to China or maybe run for office under the communist party.
Some people don’t have the same faculties as others and have trouble communicating on the same level.
Let people speak. maybe a time limit would be a good idea, but in this case he would not have exceeded his time.
Thanks.