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Ridgewood continues civility roundtable talks
March 16, 2015 Last updated: Monday, March 16, 2015, 10:49 AM
By Mark Krulish
Staff Writer |
The Ridgewood News
Another round of discussions on the concept of civility took place last week, this time in the more informal and intimate setting of the first floor senior lounge at Village Hall.
The discussion, which was led by the Rev. Jan Phillips, began with the reiteration of the purpose for holding these meetings, which was not to dictate comment or limit speech, but rather to eliminate hate speech and promote understanding between people.
“I had done a program with Pastor [Gregory] Lisby of Christ Church,” Philips said. “We were talking about backlash that has been happening because of these committee meetings and he said there’s this notion that telling people how to behave civilly is such a classist thing. That’s not where we’re coming from.”
The group explored how communication and behavior can shape a person’s perspective and examples of incivility during public meetings, while also branching off into various topics that affect the community.
Hans Jurgen Lehmann, a member of the Ridgewood Zoning Board of Adjustment, noted there have been times when audience members at meetings express skepticism that professionals testifying on behalf of applicants are being truthful with the information they give to the board.
“When they listen to the experts from the applicant, they don’t trust any of those people,” Lehmann said. “They just think they’re out there to scam them, but they are very factual.
“I’m constantly puzzled, in this society that’s supposedly very democratic, why we’re so suspicious about government. I just don’t get it,” he added.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/civility-discussion-continues-in-ridgewood-1.1289918