Keep in mind, I don't like to get political on the blog, nor do I like to use it as a forum for "hashing" or re-hashing complaints.
Just the facts:
I attended a city council "briefing" today. (The Dallas city council alternates between "briefings" and meetings every other week).
This is a public meeting, open to all.
I waited a total of about 50 minutes before I was allowed into the meeting. When I arrived, there was a large group of people outside, waiting to be let in. The police officers stationed outside told those in attendance, "there are no chairs left."
(A side note is that the officers I saw were not very good at people management. One of the officers complained about the citizens waiting being too "feisty" with him).
At one point, these two women
went and protested in the City Secretary's office about what was going on. At which point, the assistant city secretary allowed the three of us into the meeting.
When we got inside, I counted 17 free chairs.
While I'm sure it was a complex situation, I felt this was important enough to write about because:
It shows poor planning on behalf of the Dallas city council. Yes, the briefing was held in the smaller "briefing room," not the larger council chambers. However, city councils have been gathering for decades. The fact is that the public is allowed to attend. Therefore, the city council should make adjustments and be ready to let as many citizens as possible be present for their meetings. It is disturbing for people to feel they are 'locked out' of the meetings, which is the sentiment I felt from some.
(And another side note: I believe a council member was texting during the meeting. Shouldn't their attention be focused fully on the meeting?)
The End.
Thanks for reading & stay curious,
Alice
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