Can Southampton Town usher in a new era of political civility? Its leaders think so.

The Southampton Town Board has pledged to model civility, respect and cooperation following recent politically motivated assassinations ­­­­­­­­— ­and called for other governments to do the same.

The "memorializing" resolution was introduced in response to the killings of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10 and former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman, a Democrat, on June 14.

Southampton Town Councilman Michael Iasilli, a Democrat and a professor of political science and history, said he was moved to introduce the resolution after seeing his students' “horrified” reaction to the killings.

Federal authorities arrested Tyler Robinson, 22, and charged him with gunning down Kirk as he spoke during an event at Utah Valley University. Hortman and her husband, Mark, and their dog were killed in their home by a gunman who was reportedly targeting Democratic officials. The gunman also shot and wounded a Democratic state senator, John Hoffman, and his wife, Yvette, who both survived the attack. 

Republican Councilman Rick Martel and Democratic Councilman Bill Pell signed on to co-sponsor the measure. 

“We understand that a leader can be cooperative and conciliatory without compromising one’s core principles, and we will remember that our political rivals are not our enemies, but rather our colleagues, friends, and neighbors,” the resolution states.

The Southampton resolution and others passed in recent years by town boards on Long Island are examples of local officials weighing in against the backdrop of national and global events. Other boards, however, more recently have taken steps to ensure discourse is limited to local issues. 

The resolution is modeled after the "Commitment to Civility" document signed by freshman members of the U.S. House of Representatives in 2017. Rep. Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican who is now Speaker of the House, introduced the pledge in response to increasing political divisions.

Iasilli, who teaches at Suffolk County Community College and St. John’s University, said he was also inspired by the words of Utah Gov. Spencer Cox. In a speech following Kirk’s death, Cox called for the country to “find an off ramp” from political violence.

"I think there is, broadly speaking, a loss in faith in government, and that loss in faith in government has made a lot of people disenchanted with government, and rightfully so," Iasilli said in an interview. "But we need to start setting an example for how we treat each other."

The five-member town board, with three Democrats and two Republicans, voted unanimously to approve the resolution Sept. 23.

“What you see happening in the country, I think, is an escalation of deteriorating political discourse and political violence,” Iasilli said at the meeting.

Political analysts interviewed by Newsday said the measure is laudable, but only effective if public officials demonstrate civility themselves. That means soliciting views from a mix of constituents, including those that are often not the loudest.

Towns limiting polarizing dialogue

The resolution is unlikely to influence the day-to-day management of Southampton Town, which is responsible for routine municipal affairs including garbage collection, road maintenance and other issues divorced from the more polarizing national political climate. 

“Every once in a while, in our positions, we need to let the public know that there is a calming effect with this board, that civility is something we all should be striving for,” Martel said during the meeting. “And it’s really necessary, not only in town government, but in all our lives.”

For years, speakers have used public meetings as a platform to urge elected officials to take a stand on national and global issues. Town, village, city and county legislative meetings have public comment portions where residents have routinely opined on a range of subjects. 

Both North Hempstead and Oyster Bay passed resolutions condemning Hamas after its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, Newsday has reported. After Russian troops invaded Ukraine in 2022, political leaders of towns such as Hempstead condemned the attack and expressed support for Ukraine's sovereignty. 

But lately, some town officials have been trying to limit the dialogue to issues that are squarely on the legislative agenda. Earlier this year, both Riverhead and North Hempstead towns changed their public meeting rules. North Hempstead barred legislation “offered by a Board member on matters and issues outside the jurisdiction of the town ...” The Town of Riverhead voted to ban signs at public meetings, following the lead of the Suffolk County Legislature. 

Skepticism abounds

Before the Southampton Town Board’s vote, Rachel Verno, of Water Mill, objected to the resolution’s memorialization of Kirk, who founded the national political youth organization Turning Point USA. She said the board should not “honor an individual who has proven to be incredibly divisive.”

Verno listed several controversial statements made by Kirk: questioning the qualifications of Black professionals due to affirmative action; promoting antisemitic myths suggesting Jewish control of institutions such as Hollywood and academia; endorsing the "Great Replacement" conspiracy theory; and calling the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 “a mistake.”

“These are all quotes from one of the individuals the board is proposing to honor in ... a resolution in support of a commitment to civility,” Verno said.

Republican Councilwoman Cyndi McNamara voted to approve the resolution but said she was reluctant to co-sponsor it. She warned that the board risked bringing national politics into local government, especially in the lead-up to local election season.

“I think we’re very lucky to be able to focus on town issues, on community issues and leave the noise of the national politics­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ — ­­­­­­­­and the nastiness that has come about on both sides — to leave it at the door and focus on our communities,” she said during the meeting.

Behavior over messages

Respect is at the core of civility, said Carolyn Zasada, director of programs and development for the Institute for Civility, a nonprofit based in Houston. Zasada also serves as an alderman on the city council in DeKalb, Illinois.

Zasada said it's important for local governments to make a diverse set of voices heard — including people who aren't town hall regulars. 

“Civility is claiming and caring for one's identity, needs and beliefs without degrading someone else's in the process,” Zasada said. “It's really being true to yourself and owning your own perspective but also being willing and open to hear other perspectives.”

Zasada said Southampton's resolution sends an important message, which is: "‘Hey, things have gotten a little out of control. We really need to set the tone. We need to be leaders in this and go the right direction now.'” 

Messages like the Southampton Town Board’s are “vitally important” in the current political climate, said Christopher Malone, a professor of political science and associate provost at Farmingdale State College.

But he cautioned, citizens “need to see what that looks like in action, whether it's a city council meeting or legislative meeting, or on TV amongst comedians — and ordinary citizens themselves.”

Those behaviors, which comprise the norms and culture of a society, are more important than their laws, Malone said. It’s a concept French political philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville, in his book “Democracy in America,” described as “habits of the heart,” Malone said. Tocqueville wrote the book, a two-volume examination of the United States’ society, after touring America in the 1830s.

“What [Tocqueville] says is that you can write constitutions, you can write laws, you can write resolutions, but it's the norms and the culture and the habits of a people that really are what keep them in line, and keep them on the straight and narrow,” Malone said. “So if you don't have the practice of civility, the piece of paper that it's written on doesn't matter.”

Malone said that starts with tolerance and respectful disagreement.

“If you really believe in the First Amendment, you're going to have to hear some really disagreeable stuff without shooting someone, or without coming to blows,” Malone said.