Increasing incivility discouraging officials from seeking reelection

St. Stephen Mayor Allan MacEachern says that increasing incivility and harassment directed at elected councillors, municipal staff and volunteers make many people think twice about offering for public office. "It's one of the reasons that I'm considering not running again," he said in an interview, with New Brunswick's quadrennial municipal elections about eight months away, on May 11.

Up the Fundy coast in Saint John, Councillor Brent Harris says he will not reoffer for the same reason, recalling in an interview that a security guard got between him and an irate resident in June after Common Council voted unanimously to expand the Spruce Lake Industrial Park in the western part of the city. "There was an entire neighbourhood there just outraged at us, scoffing and jeering and lining the hallway and telling us that we should be ashamed of ourselves," Harris said, recalling the meeting where not everybody agreed with the decision that elected councillors felt in the best interest of the city.

MacEachern acknowledges that this incident not many miles away played a part in his decision to post an open letter on the Municipal District of St. Stephen's website asking citizens to "model civility for our children, support each other in times of disagreement and ensure that our public spaces – both physical and digital – remain safe for all."

He wrote, "In recent months, we have witnessed an alarming rise in public incivility directed toward members of council, municipal staff and volunteers. While spirited debate and accountability are the hallmarks of a healthy democracy, there is a growing trend of personal attacks, harassment and intimidation that must be addressed directly and unequivocally," the letter posted on August 20 states, adding later, "While it is expected that not all decisions will be universally supported, disagreement must never justify abuse."

"The escalating tone of discourse -- online, in person and through other channels -- has led to threats, verbal assaults and undue pressure on those who serve. This behaviour is not only unacceptable, it erodes the very foundation of civil society. It creates a hostile environment that discourages honest participation, deters talented individuals from seeking public roles and undermines the democratic process itself," the letter states, adding, "The Municipal District of St. Stephen stands firmly for respectful dialogue, open engagement and the safety and dignity of every individual contributing to public service. We encourage healthy debate and welcome criticism -- when it is constructive, respectful and grounded in fact. But we will not tolerate conduct that crosses the line into harassment, intimidation or threats."

St. Stephen has not had a confrontation at a public meeting quite as tense as the one in which Harris found himself in June, and, to date, the town conducts municipal district council meetings without security guards. Still, the mayor said in the interview, "We're very unstable right now, listening to all the stuff going on between Canada and the U.S. That upsets everybody but, meanwhile, we're fighting with each other; like, it's crazy. We're fighting each other over something that is way bigger than us. We've just got to start thinking about ourselves and everybody else and get back to community‑oriented people and stop fighting with each other."

MacEachern says that some people believe that "hateful posts towards staff and volunteers and councillors" online saved the International Homecoming Festival parade last month after the Municipal District Council voted to suspend it due to the low number of entries. "What made that parade successful is our being concerned that there are only three floats and we're going to cancel and we had to make the statement and the people signed up. That's what fixed the parade. It's a shame that we had to go that far to get people going, but we had to and that's not new."

Social media can bedevil civil discourse in Saint John, too, according to Harris. "We live in an environment where people want to get the most clicks, they want to get the most engagement and they want to drive it however they see. They don't really have a sense what appropriate engagement looks like any longer, like it might have been," he says. Both Harris and MacEachern say many people have trouble accepting decisions that do not go the way they want, and both say that people sometimes come to conclusions based on false information. "Sometimes there are decisions that we have to make for the sake of the city that maybe go against your desires or preferences, but it doesn't mean there was a conspiracy," Harris says.

"It's awful, you see it, and the problem is it can turn physical, maybe even for the wrong reasons because they think what they heard was true. It's scaring away potential councillors and mayors," MacEachern says, citing information from the Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick that 35% of incumbent elected municipal representatives across the province do not intend to reoffer next year.